◄:— S A K U N O Chronicles —:►
by Kagome Taisho
Summary: ♂♀ Why are people gossiping about Sakuno, Tezuka... and Atobe? Eh?ǃ Doushitebayo?ǃ What about Ryoma‼? ≡Cameos from Yakitate‼ Japan, Spiral, Hikaru no Go & Ouran≡ ¤ Dear Daniel Radcliffe, Atobe–san sent me flowers today. ¤ »CAUTION: It melts in your brain«
1. Ryoma Echizen

**Disclaimer for each and every chapter for this fanfic and for every fanfic I have or will ever write: HINDI AKO ANG MAY ARI NITO, MMKAY? **I don't own Prince of Tennis and am not making any type of profit from this fic… if you don't count personal enjoyment that is. I would like to bear Kunimitsu's, Ryoma's, Syusuke's and Kikumaru's babies (in that order) … as well as Atobe's, Ohtori's and sprinkle a bit of Ryoga on the side just for the heck of it, but sadly, I don't own them either… and they're anime characters. (weeps)

**A/N:** I don't know why but I just wanted to throw my two cents into writing a PoT fic. .. RyoSak but anySak would do since she's so cute. Someone join me for some Sakuno-loving! (waves Sakuno-fangirl flag) Sige na, join me! If you wait for it, it'll be RyoSak… or maybe Fuji(but which one eh?)Sak or ANYSak since I could ship her with anyone… oh wait, except maybe Shinya da ne because she's scared of him da ne.

I wanted to write something set in highschool, college or after they all graduate from school so Sakuno could live happily ever afterwards, but I love Seigaku too much. Arg! Damn you, Seigaku! (pets Seigaku) X.x The idea behind this fanfic is blatantly ripped off (coughs) I mean BORROWED from one of my most favorite authors of all time – **CiraArana**. She has a KagSess fic entitled **The Diary** (if you have time and if you're a SessKag fan, you should go read it because it's REALLY GOOD) and I thought maybe I could borrow it for my PoT fic… hehe!

As I started this, I've only seen up to Episode 67 of the anime (I cried at around 61 and then again at 67 because I'm nothing but a big crybaby), the Futari no Samurai movie, Survival Camp and have never read any of the manga (I don't read manga much. ;;), so **expect some anime spoilers and butchering of canon** to suit my fangirly needs but absolutely **no manga spoilers**. Oh noes wtfchicharon! My only beta is Microsoft Word & reviews will be greatly appreciated nyah!

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∞ **S A K U N O C H R O N I C L E S **∞

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♥ **I S A **♥

She had always been there. A definite constant in his life, a permanent fixture in his games, that he never really gave it more than a passing thought.

She was the coach's granddaughter.

She was a klutz.

She was attached to the hip with that banshee that loved to embarrass him by screaming "Ryoma-sama! Ryoma-sama!" at the top of her lungs at every given situation.

He could vaguely remember a heavenly dessert gracing his palettes, courtesy of her as well. Vaguely. He didn't really pay much attention to things that weren't on top of his priority list.

She never failed to come to any of his games. Why not, she was the coach's granddaughter. Wasn't there some kind of unwritten law somewhere that a coach's granddaughter had to support the team?

She often stuttered when they exchanged the meager words that they did. She was a shy girl.

She was always there, watching him at the sidelines, cheering him on.

He couldn't remember when it started exactly, but it was like he just woke up to her being there.

She was just… there.

One time, she even went as far as to coming inside the court to interrupt his game. Yes, he was injured, but it wasn't anything major. Shards of a tennis racket to the eye wasn't anything to be concerned about. Just because he was the youngest in the team didn't mean that they could treat him like a baby.

It was bad enough that Eiji-senpai called him Ochibi; they didn't have to remind him of his apparent chibi-ness compared to the other Regulars that much. Just standing beside them would make that fact very clear to anyone.

He never really thought about anything aside from tennis, finally getting the chance to beat his oyaji in a serious game, his cat Karupin, maybe some delicious Japanese cuisines as a contrast to the Western food the people in his house seemed to prefer to make… and more tennis of course. His thoughts would occasionally drift to sizing up great players as well, but those thoughts have never been directed at a _girl_ before.

He guessed he was at about the right age to think about the opposite sex (according to his pervert of a father), but the birds and bees talk that he got from the former tennis pro made sure that he was going to be scarred for life. And if that wasn't enough, the lewd magazines his father dumped on him and forced him to read to fully "appreciate" the dreaded talk was even worse. Baka oyaji.

Today had been a lazy day. With the weekend coming, he figured he could afford to miss lunch and still survive practice later. He spent his lunch hour dozing off on one of the branches on top of his favorite tree to avoid crazy fangirls and annoying senpai-tachi. The school's rooftop wasn't safe anymore once Momo-senpai found out about it.

The weather was nice. He wasn't hungry at all. He had a big breakfast this morning. He could survive until dinner later or perhaps grab a quick bite at McDonald's on his way home. For now, it was naptime; Nothing but him, his tree and the gentle breeze lulling him to sleep.

That was until his nap was interrupted by someone. If he didn't know any better, he would say that his 'Ryuzaki senses' were tingling and that was what woke him up. Either way, he snapped out of his mild doze as someone approached his domain and sat under the current tree he was occupying.

It was a girl.

For a moment, he thought that he had been discovered, but was pleasantly surprised when he noticed that the girl merely sat down on the base of the tree and made herself comfortable. Upon close inspection, he noticed the trademark twin braids.

It was Ryuzaki.

She paid him no heed as she settled on the shaded grass area and began to unpack her bento. When she pulled out a dainty little pink notebook from her bag, he was briefly reminded of Inui-senpai as she started scribbling on it. From his vantage point on top of the tree, he could clearly see her alternating between eating and writing.

The smell from her bento wafted up to tease his senses. Ryuzaki's lunch smelled really appetizing. He was almost tempted to reveal himself in an effort to make her share some of it with him. But she looked way too engrossed in her writing that he steeled himself and decided to leave her alone.

After she finished her lunch, she relaxed into a more comfortable position and scribbled away. He didn't really care, since he wasn't a nosy type of person, but he silently speculated it to be either poetry writing or something school-related... or maybe something else. Maybe it was the former instead of the latter because she would have a faraway look from time to time, with her pen poised at the side of her chin, tapping gently. There were also girly sighs that escaped her mouth now and then.

Ryoma soon found himself a nap-mate as the girl dozed off.

The shrill cry of the bell signaling the end of the lunch hour woke them both up, and he continued to watch quietly as Little Miss Clumsy scrambled to gather her things back into her bag. She hurriedly closed her bento box and packed away everything, remembering not to leave any garbage on the grass.

The second bell sent her into near panic, which was what probably caused her to forget her pink notebook abandoned on the ground as she rushed towards the school building.

When she was out of sight, he effortlessly hopped off of his branch and picked her notebook up, tucking it into his pocket, intent on giving it back later. The girl was such a klutz. She had no sense of direction either.

She probably couldn't find her way out of a room with one way out and she'd probably lose her head if it wasn't attached to her body.

_That girl is hopeless_, he thought as he made his way to his next class. It was no wonder Tezuka-buchou had **discreetly** instructed the Seigaku Tennis Club to keep a watch out for the girl, if possible. After involving some type of slight misunderstanding and a somewhat dangerous scuffle that managed to drag even Tachibana Kippei's little sister into it (who is said to be a close friend of hers now), Ryuzaki-sensei's almost-relapse combined with prompting from Oishi spurred the young tennis captain to gather his members and politely handed them this task.

Ryuzaki-sensei liked to care for her charges in a grandmotherly, personal way and her charges were more than happy to return the favor. If you observed the buchou's face when he gave those instructions, one would assume that maybe keeping a watch on the little girl was right below his Seigaku's Pillar of Strength strategy. Maybe - One could never tell what the young man was thinking about ninety-nine point ninety-nine percent of the time.

Tezuka-buchou particularly zeroed in on the freshmen, since they were on the same grade as the girl. Horio took the opportunity to loudly assure them afterwards that he would make sure that no harm would befall the girl on his watch with his two years' worth of tennis experience. It would be all right, since Horio's tennis experience would save them all and magically cure Ryuzaki of clumsiness and penchant for attracting trouble that defied the laws of probability.

Ryoma had pulled his cap down, hiding the rolling of his eyes. That was just great. He didn't know that he signed up to be a part-time babysitter as well when he joined the Seigaku Tennis Club. But an order was an order, and no one on the team has ever refused a direct request from their buchou before.

And since he was a Regular, that meant that when Tezuka-buchou said "freshmen", it was meant more for him than for the three stooges. Who knew what would befall the girl if he left her in the care of those three?

As luck would have it, he completely forgot about the notebook until after he went home. Club practice was exceptionally hard today and he forgot about everything else. He didn't even remember it until he had to go put his laundry in the hamper. The little pink notebook was still in his uniform's pocket.

Said notebook was placed with the rest of his notebooks on his desk for easy access Monday morning. He didn't want to forget about it again, the girl might be looking for it already. And it probably involved a lot of teary-eyed, frantic searching.

So the little notebook sat quietly on top of his desk, together with his homework that remained forgotten until late that night, when he accidentally reached for it, thinking it was the notes that he was looking for. He wasn't homework-obsessed, but he preferred to have everything tucked away and settled so that he could concentrate on his tennis afterwards. That's why he preferred to finish all his homework by Friday night or Saturday morning at most, and then devote the rest of the weekend to tennis. His English homework he could make five minutes before classes started and still ace it, but that was beside the point.

His eyes skimmed over the surface & read the first few lines before the young tennis prince realized that he had reached for the wrong thing. What was most curious about the page that he was looking at were the chibi caricatures of him.

Curious, he turned to the first page and began to read.

_Dear Diary,_

_I met a very interesting boy today. His name is Ryoma Echizen and he saved me. _

Ryoma paused, debating with himself if he should continue reading. This wasn't just some ordinary notebook – it wasn't some book for poetry either. It was a personal diary. This was Ryuzaki's private thoughts – should he violate her privacy and read it?

A small part of him said no, he shouldn't. It was a wrong thing to do.

The other part of him said why not. If he was mentioned in it, didn't he somehow have the right to read it? That's right – maybe he should just read the entries about him. That wasn't any kind of violation at all. Since he was reading stuff about him, that was alright, right?

_Right_, that small part of him agreed. And besides… shy, timid, clumsy little Ryuzaki couldn't possibly have written a lot of interesting things. She was so… quiet. Also, it was kind of interesting to know what and how other people saw the same situations that he did. It was probably way different than how he saw things.

He could just read a few entries, return it to her on Monday, and she wouldn't even know that he read it. He wanted to know how he 'saved' her exactly.

_See, I was riding the metro to meet my grandmother so we can go watch my first tennis match together when these rude and definitely loud boys were talking to each other in front of me. One of them was swinging his racket around carelessly while showing off, and I was so scared of being hit that I couldn't find the courage to voice out my concern._

_The quiet boy sitting directly in front of me in the train gained their attention and stopped the guy, "Sasabe" according to his companions, from swinging his racket carelessly, and I my face was saved from getting acquainted with the object. He was really brave standing up to older boys who were twice his size, and he was cute, too. He stepped off the train before I could thank him though, but we later met again when he asked me for directions to the tennis courts. _

_It wasn't like I was stalking him or spying on him or anything, but I just happened to notice that his name was Ryoma E. because it was embroidered into his tennis gear. _

_I feel really bad since I gave him the wrong directions. Maybe I should have warned him that I'm not very good in knowing which way is which and I tend to get lost a lot. Ryoma-kun had to default from his match because of me. He was disqualified and it was my entire fault._

Ryoma snorted. Damn right it was. Who else would it be? He wouldn't forget that day. He took the wrong exit, causing him to be five minutes late. It was one of the rare days (not counting his matches with his father) that he actually lost and by default nonetheless. If the girl hadn't given him bad directions, he would have been able to play.

The only saving grace from it was that he was able to play a little, even if it was against an amateur jerk like Sasabe.

_I found him sipping his drink, and he remembered me this time. He blamed me for costing him his game and honestly, I blame myself as well. sigh I hope he doesn't hate me too much. _

_I tried to make it up to him by offering to get him a drink, but he ended up paying for his drink and mine as well. Why did I forget to bring change that day? Ah mou! I can be so stupid sometimes! I don't think I made a very good impression on him. He didn't even remember saving me in the train earlier. The only memory I managed to give him of me was getting him disqualified from his match. Great job, Sakuno! _

_I really can't blame him for not remembering who I was. I do a very good impression of a wallflower. Or a potted plant, take your pick. _

_I think he took out his frustrations on Sasabe-san and his goons though. They came a little while later and the next thing I knew, the cute boy I met on the train was challenging them to a tennis match. Do all boys settle their differences that way or is it just with tennis players?_

_I was worried for him, but was soon amazed at his skills. I sat there watching their match, holding on to his jacket. It smelled nice – it smelled like fresh-cut grass with a hint of grape Ponta. I took a good sniff of it to imprint it on my memory… okay, I took lots of sniffs when no one was looking, okay? I heard that certain smells can evoke memories, and I wanted to remember what my savior that day smelled like._

_He was clearly levels higher than those bullies. I had no reason to be worried at all. He didn't "chicken out" as Sasabe-san taunted him. Ryoma-kun didn't even flinch at all. _

_Obaa-chan later informed me that Ryoma-kun is the "Prince of Tennis". I can understand why people would give him that title. Not only is he calm and composed like a real prince all the time, his tennis skills are amazing, too. Ryoma-kun never faltered even when Sasabe-san cheated by proclaiming that Ryoma-kun's high lob as out when it was clearly well within the line. I wish I could be more like that. He has confidence in spades and it makes me wonder if anything could ever faze him. _

_He merely compensated for his disadvantage at their self-judged game by making the ball remain spinning at the edge of the court's line. I've never seen anyone do that before! That was the first ever tennis match that I have ever seen, and watching him made me want to join the tennis club at school myself as well._

_I feel bad for saying this, but I think that Sasabe-san is a sore loser. When Ryoma-kun was clearly dominating the game, he threw his racket at Ryoma-kun and brushed it off as an accident. I wanted to go right up to Sasabe-san and stomp on his foot hard or give him a piece of my mind. How dare he hurt Ryoma-kun intentionally and not even apologize? Just because he was losing didn't mean that he could go and throw his racket at his opponent's face like that._

_I was very afraid for Ryoma-kun when blood dripped from his face. Thankfully, the racket just hit him on his forehead and not his eyes. It would have been worse if it hit his eyes. I didn't know that people weren't supposed to come inside the courts during a game, so I foolishly offered him my handkerchief to wipe the blood away, but he refused. I was a little… okay A LOT embarrassed but it was okay because he wasn't hurt THAT bad. _

_He even paid Sasabe-san back with a serve that smacked him in the face. Hah! Serves him right! I know I shouldn't revel in the pain of others but I just can't help myself in this case. Sasabe-san is a big meanie. He's a bigger coward than anybody I've ever known in my entire life so far, too. I can't believe a highschool student like him cowered into a crouching position like he did just because of a little tennis ball. Ryoma-kun didn't even use his Twist Serve in the end. _

_He couldn't just gracefully admit that he lost terribly either. As Ryoma-kun said, "there are those who use excuses for losing". I should remember that and strive to never be one of those people, especially now that I'm starting Junior High. _

_Seigaku is well-known for the boys' tennis club. I'm sure that they're going to win the Kantou Tournament easy. Even though I don't know a lick about tennis, it's a well-known fact that their Regulars are really strong this year. And the buchou isn't a mere pushover either. No one has ever beaten him before. I even heard my obaa-chan say that they're even aiming for the Nationals this year. With people like Mitsu-san on the team, I'm sure they will. I'm not sure I'm supposed to call him that anymore. Even if I do have his permission, he's buchou now and I don't think it would be appropriate. I think that even obaa-chan would agree with me on this one._

_I've heard lots of praises from obaa-chan about this year's team members. I can't wait to watch more tennis games. If they're as good as Ryoma-kun's, I'm sure I'm going to enjoy watching them._

_I wonder if Ryoma-kun will join his school's tennis club. I'm sure he'll get accepted, even if he is just an entering freshman. I wonder what school he goes to, for that matter. I wonder if I'll ever see him again. I hope I do. And I hope that he remembers me next time._

There were little drawings of hearts around the area where she signed her name.

Ryoma blinked. The entry had been an eye-opener, and surprisingly, somewhat interesting. Not interesting as watching Fuji-senpai or Tezuka-buchou play or try to figure out a way around the tensai's Triple Counter of course, but interesting in its own way. He wondered if all girls thought like that.

Her recollection of that day was more different than his. He remembered lecturing that amateur Sasabe about the correct hand placements in the Western Grip he so noisily bragged about when in fact he was mistaking it for the Eastern Grip, when she was scared of getting hit by the racket. He remembered not being impressed with the guy's weak Bullet Serve while she was probably busy sniffing his jersey.

Did all girls do that?

He felt somewhat amused that the girl still managed to attach a polite honorific to Sasabe's name even when she wanted to do him physical damage.

Bah, not that it mattered anyway. The entry was an interesting read, but he still had homework to do. He can't afford to slack off or else he wouldn't have time to practice the weekend away.

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Yawning loudly as he stroked Karupin gently, Ryoma stared at the uninteresting show on TV impassively.

He had nothing else better to do and that was it. It was raining and his oyaji preferred to read his magazines rather than play a game with him.

"Rain and tennis don't mix." His oyaji had said. He sounded like Ryuzaki-sensei, and the memory made him frown, reminding him of 'the game that got away'. He was just about to make a comeback, if not for the coach's interruption. He felt duped, he wanted a rematch.

Ryoma snorted. _Rain and tennis don't mix my ass_. The truth was the old geezer still didn't take him seriously and would rather spend his time looking at scantily clad women than play tennis with him. _Baka oyaji._

The old man continued to ignore him, giggling girlishly from time to time as he turned the pages to his porn. _Kuso oyaji._

Ryoma trudged up to his room grumpily, throwing himself on the bed angrily. He finished his homework last night; there was nothing else to do. He wasn't much of a TV person. If the rain didn't let up, he could almost see it now.

Echizen Ryoma: dead at age 12. Cause of death: boredom.

Cat-like eyes scanned the room, which was unnaturally neat for a boy his age. His gaze settled on the desk, the pink notebook calling out to him, asking him to read it. Should he?

_You should_, said that little voice again. _You read one entry already, what's the harm in reading one more, right?_

Giving in to the little voice easily since he had nothing else to do, he grabbed the notebook, flipped to a page and settled on his bed comfortably to read.

_Dear Diary,_

_Today I told Tomo-chan that I wished to join the tennis club. I could feel my face heat up as she questioned my sudden interest in the club, and I couldn't make myself tell her that it was because of a boy I met at the tennis courts this weekend. I didn't have enough courage to turn in my application by myself, so I asked Tomo-chan to come with me. We met a lady on the way and we led her and her senpai to the Seigaku tennis courts. _

_Imagine my surprise when the very person who inspired me to join the tennis club was in the tennis court! What a lucky coincidence! I didn't realize I went to the same school as him! Tomo-chan dragged me forward for an introduction. I could tell that Tomo-chan liked him on the spot. I didn't know how I felt about that. I mean… she's my friend so I shouldn't begrudge her for admiring whoever she wants to admire, but it made me feel smaller somehow. _

What was wrong with people admiring him? Not that he was the type of person to conduct his own cheering squad and go around calling himself "ore-sama" like a certain someone, but he didn't see what the relevance of that sentence was.

_But I'm happy for her. Tomo-chan doesn't get to do a lot of things like join clubs on her free time because she always gets stuck babysitting her brothers. I'm the youngest in my family, even though I have no siblings, and I'm always the one who is being babysat, despite being twelve years of age already. _

"Hmmmm," Ryoma said to no one in particular. That explains her baby-ish attitude. Ryuzaki reminded him of a newborn lamb. Sweet, very mild-mannered, wobbly and not yet weaned. She was a real dear.

His cousin stayed with them, but not to babysit him at all. He was too old to be babysat. Wasn't Ryuzaki the same age as him?

_The Juniors and Seniors were out today, so all that's left of the tennis club were the Freshmen and non-Regulars. There was a senpai named Momoshiro Takeshi there. He scared me when he challenged Ryoma-kun at first; it made me wonder if all senpai were naturally mean to their underclassmen. _

_Why did he want to crush Ryoma-kun before he started to bud, I wonder? The look on Ryoma-kun's eyes took away some of my fear. Ryoma-kun was as confident as always. He accepted the challenge and I secretly knew that he was going to do well. I don't know why but I just have such high confidence in him. He looks like one of those people who manages to succeed with little to no effort at all._

Ryoma smirked, despite himself.

_I learned a new thing about tennis today. If the grip faces right side up, it's called "smooth". If it's upside down, it's "rough". I heard Horio-kun say so himself, and it must be true because he has two years worth of tennis experience. He even got to umpire the game, which was very cool. I wish I could say I had two years of tennis experience myself. Horio-kun is very lucky._

_Momo-senpai is cool as well. He looked intimidating to me at first, because he's way taller than I am, and he scared me when he challenged Ryoma-kun, but I could tell that he is nothing like Sasabe-san or his band of misfits from the park. Momo-senpai is a class act. _

Ryoma's brows furrowed, not liking how naïve and easily impressed Ryuzaki sounded. Why is it that she thought of everyone as 'cool'? Even Horio, who is more of a clown than anything that resembles remotely 'cool'.

_I think that it's pretty cute how Tomo-chan had taken to calling Ryoma-kun "Ryoma-sama". It sounds weird for some reason. I don't think I could call him that. I know it's silly but I like to think of him as my friend. He saved me, after all. It makes me glad that I met him outside of school and before I knew he was a Prince of Tennis. I'm happy that he has really great tennis skills, but I think I'll always remember him as the boy who saved me from getting hit by a racket instead of someone who could do a Twist Serve. _

Ryoma had to resist the urge to smile at that and continued reading.

_You know, when Ryoma-kun does his Twist Serve, he looks like he's suspended in the air for several seconds. It's like art in motion, it's so beautiful. Of course I couldn't help but marvel at how the ball goes straight for the opponent's face after it bounces as well, but I still like the part where he releases the ball and hangs gracefully in the air, just several inches off the ground, before he delivers the serve best._

Years of practicing indifference enabled Ryoma to keep the red out of his cheeks.

_Maybe if I practice hard enough, I could come half as good as Ryoma-kun is at tennis. Haha, yeah right, as if that would ever happen! But I could dream, right? I don't think I could ever manage a serve that would knock the racket out of a senpai's hand like that… I don't even think I could do a proper serve as of this moment. _

_I bought my tennis gear over the weekend. I picked out a pink tennis bag and a pink racket. They're so cute! The tennis skirt is so pretty and I can't wait to test them out! Obaa-chan suggested that I practice my swings with my new racket, so I did, but all I ended up doing was knocking things around in my room. Note to self: Practice swings outside of the house._

_Momo-senpai called it quits after Ryoma-kun switched hands from right to left, but I think it was because of his sprained foot, poor Momo-senpai. It wouldn't have looked bad at all even if he lost to Ryoma-kun at all. He's still our senpai and he's still cool in my book._

Somehow, Ryoma felt irritated at that. She sounded like some kind of Momo-senpai fangirl.

_I embarrassed myself again today. Ryoma-kun didn't even remember me at all and I felt like dying then and there. I know I'm not a beauty worth remembering, but I didn't think that my face was THAT forgettable. I know I'm not attractive at all, not to mention that I'm too short as well, and my family likes to tease me that it's because I insist on wearing my hair so long that all the nutrients that my body needs to mature all go to my hair, but I just can't help it. I like my braids too much._

_Maybe my looks will improve when I grow up. I hope so, even if it's only up to the point where people don't forget who I am or what I look like. It was a good thing that not a lot of people witnessed my humiliation. I could just find myself a rock and crawl under it until I feel comfortable again… I guess if you're talented and people flock to you, you wouldn't remember all the acquaintances that you meet either. _

_Tomo-chan consoled me by saying that Ryoma-kun probably sees a lot of people all the time and have their faces and names all mixed up. She's probably right… I'm just a nobody after all. Why would the Prince of Tennis even bother to remember my name, right?_

She signed her name at the bottom again this time, but he noticed that it had only one heart scribbled on it, far less than the ones on her previous entry.

Ryoma felt his gut clench in guilt. He didn't know Ryuzaki had taken it THAT hard. He didn't bother paying much attention to much anything that didn't involve tennis. Come to think of it, he did remember who she was while he was walking home, so that counted for something, right?

_Taku, girls can be so sensitive at times! _He placed the notebook facedown and hopped off of the bed, irritated at himself for feeling irritated at himself after reading that entry.

He needed something to drink. He was thirsty.

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Reviews will be much appreciated.


	2. Ann & Ibu Shinji of Fudomine

_Italicized_ parts are either diary entries, sound effects or thoughts. Beware: This fic may induce boredom. Any and all flames will be laughed at with no hesitation.

♥ **D A L A W A **♥

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_Dear Diary,_

_The Tennis Club had a Ranking Tournament today. A ranking tournament is held at Seigaku to determine who the Regulars will be. There are four blocks, and the top two ranking people on each block becomes a Regular. Normally, freshmen aren't allowed to try out for the Ranking Tournament until after the summer, but Ryoma-kun got to participate under the D Block today._

_It seems like I'm not the only one who has been drawn to the charisma that Ryoma-kun has. Even the senpai-tachi seemed very interested in him, and even watched his games against Kaidoh-senpai and Inui-senpai. I had no doubt that he would at all, even against Inui-senpai's scary Data Tennis._

_Shiba-san and her Inoue-senpai came to watch the ranking today. It was kind of embarrassing how Tomo-chan was cheering Ryoma-kun on. She has a really loud voice and she puts her lungs to good use when she wants to. I wish I could be like her though. For once, I wish I could cheer for Ryoma-kun as hard as Tomo-chan does sometimes. All my voice does when I want to cheer is squeak at the most. _

_He gave me some advice today. I was told that I bend my legs too much, I shouldn't flip my wrist the way I usually do it, my shoulders are open too wide… and my hair is too long? I don't know if he was serious about that last advice… I'm not sure if my long hair would really affect the way I play… would it? _

Ryoma found himself forgetting to bring the notebook back to school with him on Monday, promising himself to remember tomorrow. He hit the snooze button on his alarm clock one too many times and nobody cared to wake him up. If you were to point any fingers as to why the little notebook wasn't reunited with its owner by then, you could blame his father.

The girl looked frazzled that day, he observed indifferently from beneath his white cap. He could hear the banshee try to comfort her, snippets of their conversation floating over to him.

"Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find it." Osakada told Ryuzaki.

"It can't have gone that far, maybe someone found it already." He heard them saying after searching the school grounds for a few minutes.

Osakada was a lot calmer and more in control than Ryuzaki in this situation. "For all you know, it might be in the Lost and Found, ne?" It wasn't her diary, after all.

"Are you sure you didn't just misplace it in your house somewhere?" She sounded a little desperate by then.

When lunchtime rolled around, the loud girl was literally pulling her hair out in frustration. "When was the last time you remember having it? Where else could you have gone? We retraced all your steps! Five times!"

Sakuno would let out an occasional sniffle or two, looking like it was taking all of her energy to keep from bursting into tears. Her reddish-brown eyes were more red than brown, and they were puffy.

Ryoma felt bad, and felt compelled to say something, but he thought it best to just tell her he had it when he finally handed it back to her. He didn't like looking at her distressed face.

_Dear Diary,_

_Ryoma-kun rejected my bento today. I worked so hard to make it for him, and I felt like someone ran a knife through me when he replied "mada mada dane" when I asked him how he liked it. I know I'm not much of a good cook, even though my family assures me otherwise – but they're my family and they're obliged to compliment my cooking, so I don't think they count, but it broke my heart hearing those words from Ryoma-kun himself. He was just being honest, I guess, so I can't really blame him for anything._

_Tomo-chan and Horio-kun assured me that Ryoma-kun surely didn't mean to say that about my bento, but I know Ryoma-kun wouldn't want to lie to anyone, even if it is to spare their feelings._

On Tuesday, Ryuzaki was looking a little worse. Ryoma's guilt was eating him up from the inside by then, and he found himself alternating between tuning out their conversations and listening to them intently. So far, no one suspected anybody of anything, least of all him, of taking the little notebook.

As far as he could tell, Ryuzaki was under the impression that she misplaced it, and Ryoma was relieved that she didn't seem to remember leaving it under his tree in her haste last Friday.

They happened to sit on adjacent tables in the cafeteria during lunch that day, and the Freshmen Trio couldn't help but notice the visibly distressed girl. Since no one expected any type of reaction from him, he remained impassive as ever while the trio curiously inquired if there was any problem.

"She lost something very important," Osakada explained as the boys hovered.

Horio's unibrow quibbled. "We can help you find it, if you allow us." He volunteered. Katsuo and Kachiro nodded their assent. "Right, Echizen?"

"Ossu." Echizen said, not meeting anyone's eye while he sipped his milk.

"Arigatou, minna." Sakuno murmured gratefully, hands red from wringing them together.

"Yosh! With more people looking, I'm sure we'll find it in no time!" Piped Sakuno's loud friend, a determined look on her face, right fist clenched in determination. "It's a diary. It's pink and it's about this big" Osakada gave them an approximate measurement using her fingers, "and this thick. She lost it around this weekend – last Friday to be exact."

"Where was the last place that you remember seeing it?" Kachiro asked.

"Did you try the Lost and Found?" Horio said at the same time.

"I remember bringing it to school – I always bring it with me," Sakuno blushed and wrung her hands together more "I can never tell when I feel like writing nor have the time to, so I thought it would be all right."

Horio nodded knowingly. "Like Inui-senpai and his data book!" He proclaimed, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "Maybe someone picked it up. I'm sure they're going to return it once they find out who owns it."

"But it's been several days after a weekend now –" Ryoma slightly stiffened, "if someone found it, they would have returned it by now." Osakada huffed. They've been looking for it ALL over every place Sakuno frequented. Even Tachibana Ann was recruited for the search, since Sakuno also spent time hanging out with her and might have lost the diary while with the girl.

Tomoka was kind of bothered with Sakuno's friendship with the other girl at first. Because of her brothers, she couldn't spend as much free time with her bestfriend as much as she wanted to. When Sakuno had first told her about her friendship with the girl from Fudomine, Tomoka had been slightly jealous. She felt as if Sakuno was replacing her with someone who probably had more things in common with her, and she wanted to go march right up to Fudomine and tell the girl off. No one was going to steal her bestfriend away right from under her nose while she was busy taking care of her brothers.

Sakuno was **her** bestfriend, not Ann's. She even adapted to being an avid tennis fan because of Sakuno. She went to the Seigaku Tennis Club's matches whenever she could, and even became the president for Ryoma-sama's fanclub because she knew that her shy bestfriend was too timid to do it on her own. If she didn't do it, someone else was going to come and steal Ryoma-sama right from under her and she didn't want that to happen. Tomoka decided that she was going to protect Sakuno's blooming love.

She knew the circumstances of how the two girls met. Sakuno attracted trouble like honey to bees and had accidentally stepped on some jerk's new sneakers. Ann came to the rescue but both girls ended up getting rescued by Momo-senpai anyway. Their paths met again when Sakuno had been late and lost on her way to a Seigaku match. She ended up colliding violently with a guy who was a bigger jerk than the last time, causing his drink to spill all over himself. Sakuno was being shaken like a rag doll, despite numerous apologies on her part, before Ann came.

After failed attempts to make the guy listen to reason, Ann had resorted to physically extracting a visibly shaken Sakuno from the guy's grip, which caused it to turn into a big scuffle involving the two girls and a group of about six to seven boys who were twice their size and had absolutely no respect for women. The girls ended up sporting cut lips, several bruises and matching black eyes before the Fudomine tennis team came looking for their detained captain's little sister and ended up beating the snot out of the guys for what they did to the girls.

Sakuno even managed to twist her right ankle, causing Coach Ryuzaki Sumire to almost have a relapse when Tachibana Kippei came to the Seigaku match, a bruised and battered Sakuno in his arms.

Inui noted on his data book that day that the people most affected at the sight of a beaten and bruised Sakuno as much as their beloved coach was were Fuji, Tezuka, Oishi (understandably) and if you had great observation skills like him – even Echizen. Although he didn't show it much on the outside, or on his facial expressions since he was probably training to become as good as Tezuka in masking his emotions, Echizen's behavior was equal to that of someone who was about to raze a village. His opponent didn't stand a chance and Echizen's match ended after fifteen minutes.

Inui made out with a boat load of data that day, enough to fill a whole notebook or three.

But still, it didn't mean that just because Ann defended Sakuno and vice versa that Ann was going to be Sakuno's new bestfriend for life, replacing her, Osakada Tomoka, president of Ryoma-sama's fanclub. The title of being Sakuno's bestfriend rightfully belonged to her, and Ann had better watch out because she was very experienced in tussling. She was an expert tussler and has never lost to even her brothers tag-teaming her.

Still, if Ann was as concerned about Sakuno as she was, she probably wasn't THAT bad… just as long as she didn't steal her bestfriend away from her, that is.

"Maybe the person who found it had other things to do… or he forgot." Kachiro offered.

"Or maybe he read it, found it interesting and – uh, I mean… um… no, I didn't mean to say that, Ryuzaki. I was just kidding!" Horio paled and even Echizen shot him a glare, since he managed to distress the girl even more. "It was a joke!" He said, waving his hands in front of him, sweat gathering at the back of his neck.

"Well it was a very tasteless joke!" Osakada screamed right into his face, looking like she wanted to pummel him to the ground before getting up, turning around and dragging an upset Sakuno behind her, leaving the boys to turn to Horio madly.

"You should apologize to Ryuzaki," Kachiro demanded, crossing his arms in front of him. He was normally calm and collected, but he had a deep sense of doing what was right. Upsetting a girl was definitely not right. Kachiro nodded aggressively beside him as they rounded in on Horio.

"I will, I will! I didn't mean it, I really didn't! Echizen, you believe me, don't you?"

"Mada mada dane," Ryoma replied as he tipped his hat and got up.

Tomorrow. Tomorrow he would give the notebook back to her and everything would be fine.

_Dear Diary,_

_Ryoma-kun was injured in a Singles match today. I was really worried about him, scared even, but he didn't even let his injury hinder his game. It makes me admire the strength of his character more. He kind of reminds me of the buchou at times. They both have the same strong will and determination. I think that boy has no fear. No fear at all._

By the time Wednesday rolled by, he was making up excuses as to why he shouldn't just walk up to her and hand her the diary back. It wasn't like he was scared of being discovered or afraid of being found out that he accidentally took it home with him and have read it. It wasn't like that at all.

He just didn't want anyone to misunderstand his intentions, that's all.

One, he had Monday and Tuesday to give it back to her but he didn't. People might think that he deliberately kept it from the girl or something, or worse – that he read it. Yes, he did read it, but it was unintentional at first. The next time it happened, he didn't have anything else to do, and he made sure to read only the entries that somehow involved him, which, in his defense, were most of them. He was entitled to read anything that concerned him, wasn't he?

Two, he really didn't want to explain how he ended up with the thing. He was going to have to explain and reveal his hiding place, and he wasn't about to let that happen. The purpose of having a secret spot would be all for nothing if he was to reveal it. Also, he didn't want to look like he was deliberately spying on her or anything like that. **She **went to **his** secret spot, not the other way around. It wasn't his fault that she left the notebook there.

He had to somehow find a way to return it to her without her knowing, and that's why the diary was still in his possession, safely tucked away under his mattress at home.

_Dear Diary,_

_Some people might say that Ryoma-kun has an attitude, and he looks like he doesn't care about anything at all, but I believe, deep down, that Ryoma-kun is just one of those strong, silent-type people. When they speak, you should listen and heed their advice. They're deep thinkers and come up with the best ideas. _

On Thursday, he thought of a brilliant idea. If he was going to secretly return the thing, he could stealthily sneak it into her shoe locker. _Genius!_ Who said that Seigaku only had one tensai in their Tennis Club?

Now, all he had to do was find out which locker was hers and he would be able to return it to her.

She was still distressed over the loss of her diary, but she didn't look as visibly upset anymore. The unhealthy redness and puffiness in her eyes were gone as well.

He had to return that diary somehow, before he had that little voice in his head doing little commentaries about snippets of Ryuzaki's diary entries.

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He would probably fail as a shinobi. Stealth tactics looked easier on television, actually.

Not that he brought the diary with him to school to put into her locker discreetly, because he didn't want to be caught with the evidence until he could make sure that he would be able to dispose of it quickly, but it felt like everywhere he went, there was always someone on the lookout. Walls have eyes and ears, people were always watching.

"It's been over a week already and no one's returned it yet." Oishi heard Horio telling the other two freshmen as he walked into the club house to change.

Echizen and Kaidoh were sitting on the benches inside, changing and getting their gear ready as well.

"They still haven't found it?" Kachiro shook his head in disbelief. "I'm starting to think that maybe it's been thrown out by now." His shoulders drooped sadly.

Katsuo looked glum next to him as well.

Curious and concerned at their low spirits, Oishi turned to the Freshmen Trio. "Found what?" He inquired as he got his own gear ready.

Horio stepped up, "Ryuzaki lost her data book."

"Ryuzaki-chan has a data book?" Inui asked as he stepped into the club house, beating Oishi from inquiring about it. He quirked a brow, puzzled as to what she needed it for.

_Dear Diary,_

_Someday, I think that I would like to try one of Inui-senpai's vegetable juices. If it really did help improve one's tennis skills, then I would have to drink buckets of them to help mine. If they're not THAT awful-tasting, I just might… Now, if only I had the courage to approach Inui-senpai and ask him for it…_

"It's called a 'diary', not a 'data book', Horio-kun." Kachiro corrected then turned to his senpai.

The Seigaku Data Man whipped up his own data book and started to take down notes. "Ii data."

The vice-captain ignored the man scribbling away in the background. "Does she remember where she saw it last?" Oishi asked, unaware that that was probably the first thing everybody asked when they found out about the lost diary.

"Ryuzaki lost her diary last Friday. She doesn't remember where she saw it last, but it could have been between her house and here." Horio told his fukubuchou.

"I'm sure someone saw it and would probably give it back any day now," Oishi said as he zipped up his jacket.

"But that was last week. LAST WEEK, senpai!" The normally timid boy's rose a pitch, looking very distressed that it's been a week since the disappearance of Sakuno's diary.

Oishi patted Kachiro's head reassuringly. "Maybe the person who found it had to track down who the owner was, that's why it took him all this time."

"Or maybe whoever picked it up already knows who the owner is but refuses to give it back because he or she's reading Ryuzaki's diary!" Horio exclaimed, mortified at the thought.

A tingle went up and down Echizen's spine at Horio's words but he remained to look unaffected on the outside.

"That's not a very good thing to do," Kachiro frowned, not liking the possibility.

Kaidoh hissed in agreement.

On Monday, yes, that was it. He was going to return her diary to her on Monday next week for sure.

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"Are you **sure** none of you guys found it, took it and is now keeping it as some kind of sick, twisted prank?" Tachibana Kippei's little sister, Ann, demanded with a stern look, arms akimbo. "Because this isn't funny. It's distressing Sakuno greatly and you know that if Sakuno is distressed then so am I." She scowled fiercely, making sure that they knew she wasn't kidding.

They were in the public tennis courts, their usual hangout after class hours. The members of the Fudomine tennis team were obediently standing in a straight line, with Ann pacing in front of them. Sakuno stood at one side, facing the boys, behind Ann, wringing her hands.

Sakuno didn't think that anyone she knew would do that, and even told Ann-chan that, but the girl had been emphatic, seemingly bordering on obsessed when it came to finding her lost journal.

"Anou," Sakuno interrupted, taking pity on the innocent boys being chastised, "I don't think any of them would do that, Ann-chan." The team looked at the girl gratefully, they feared their captain's little sister just as much or probably more than they did their buchou. "You shouldn't be too hard on them," she continued, "It's okay, I'll just get a new journal, no harm done."

Several tall heads nodded vigorously in agreement, but no one dared to utter a word to the girl giving them a sermon just yet.

"Maybe she's PMS-ing," Ishida Tetsu boldly dared to whisper quietly to Kamio Akira, earning them both ice cold glares from the fiery Ann.

"What was that?" Ann's eyebrow twitched dangerously, and the Hadoukyuu and rhythym experts took a precautionary step back. Before they could reply, she turned to her friend. "You can't just do that, Sakuno. Yes you can have a new journal, but you can't just give up on searching for that lost one. What if someone uses it to blackmail you?" Her raised voice reminded Sakuno of Tomo-chan.

"Anou, I don't think I wrote anything worth blackmailing for, Ann-chan." Sakuno was embarrassed. For what it was worth, if anybody ever read her journal, the person would probably be bored to tears.

She was really worried about losing her journal before, she felt like a piece of her had gone missing after she lost it. She even cried countless tears, which, thinking back, she regretted now, because it might have been the cause of Tomo-chan and Ann-chan's apparent obsessing over finding the lost diary. It sort of turned out into a race into which girl could find the diary first.

She didn't want to inconvenience anyone any further, looking for something so insignificant, but by the time she had resigned herself to accepting the loss, Tomo-chan had already instilled the help of the Freshmen Trio, and Ann-chan had already recruited the Fudomine tennis team to their causes.

If she didn't stop this now, who knows what else these two girls were going to do.

At least her obaa-chan remained oblivious though. She didn't want to worry her grandmother needlessly, and it didn't need to involve any adults in finding something that was carelessly lost anyway.

"It's okay, really." Sakuno tried again. "Just forget about it. I don't want to intrude upon the team's practice or anything." She bit her lip, hoping her friend would listen to her. This was really embarrassing. Her lost diary wasn't _that_ important.

"Of course it is, Sakuno-chan." Ibu Shinji said in his usual monotone voice, as he stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder. "A person's diary contains their most secret thoughts. Thoughts that no other person should be privy to. It must be very distressing to lose something so precious. I know that I would be worried and very anxious if _my_ diary was lost. Not that I have a diary, mind you, because I don't. I don't think that I could keep a diary, unlike girls seem to prefer to do. I'm not saying that only girls would keep diaries, or that diaries are beneath real men, because good tennis players like Seigaku's Inui keeps that data book of his, which can be considered as a manly diary if you think about it… What I meant to say was that I could imagine your pain in losing something important. I had a hamster once. Its name was Pete. Pete was a very good hamster, he liked to train on his exercise wheel everyday, and I would play with him everyday after I got home from school. One summer, I went to tennis camp, and when I came home, my kaa-san told me that Pete ran away. I was very distressed. I don't know what I did or what happened to make Pete ran away. Up until this day I still couldn't figure out what his reason was, even though I tried to analyze everything that I did. I made sure he had a clean cage. He had good food and fresh water everyday, I even went as far as to put sweet smelling grass-like air fresheners on his cage and a soft little hamster bed, just to make him comfortable. There was no reason why he should have run away at all; At least no reason that could have stemmed from me because as far as I know, I was a very good owner. It makes me wonder if kaa-san or tou-san did anything to make Pete run away from home. But then I stop myself from thinking that because they're my parents and a good son never thinks bad about his parents. I'm grateful to my parents, even if I don't agree with everything they think, say or tell me to do all the time. Maybe Pete went home to see his parents, or at least, that's what I would like to believe. Somewhere out there, Pete reconciled with his parents and probably has his own family by now." He finished, looking very pleased with himself after taking a deep breath.

"…" was all the rest of the Fudomine Team could think or say, most of them wanting to interrupt Shinji from his endless ranting but held back because Shinji was talking to Ryuzaki-chan, which in turn prevented Ann from lecturing them. Their minds have turned to mush at around the mention of some kind of hamster named Pete-something-or-other whom they suspected didn't actually "run away" while Shinji was at tennis camp.

"Um…" Ann was a total loss for words, her righteous indignation long forgotten. She marveled at how Sakuno could stand there and take in everything that Shinji said without visibly shying away from it or running away as fast as she could in the other direction. As far as she knew, Sakuno was the only person who actually _listened_ to the guy drone on and on and on and on about forever and a day.

Even _she_ dreaded Shinji's inevitable Droning of Doom. Heck, even her onii-chan put a stop to Shinji's droning, since she suspected that it probably gave him headaches, but Sakuno… well, Sakuno _stays_ there and actually _listens_ to Shinji's senseless lectures. Ann thought that Sakuno possessed some kind of special ability to tune out sounds, thus enabling her to endure what most men would normally flee from, screaming like a little girl on the top of their lungs while heading towards the hills, but she was proved wrong when Sakuno would actually start to _converse _with the Fudomine Regular.

The other Regulars started teasing Shinji about finding his soulmate, but they stopped saying it so much after the hour-long lecturing was turned on them. Call it cowardly, but they thought it best if Shinji continued to devote most of his talking to anyone else but them.

"Arigatou, Shinji-kun." Sakuno blushed prettily, touched at how Shinji tried to make her feel better. Shinji-kun was far different from all the other boys she was acquainted with. While she liked Tezuka-buchou and Ryoma-kun for their strong, silent attitudes, or Syusuke-nii's easy-going attitude, Shinji-kun's talkativeness was definitely unique. She couldn't help but admire Shinji-kun's speech capabilities, which she horribly lacked.

Seeing a window of opportunity, Ann seized it. "Yes, thank you Shinji. I'm sure that Sakuno will be glad to know that you and the others," she swiveled commanding eyes at the rest of her brother's team, "will do your best in finding Sakuno's lost diary." Before Shinji could lapse into another one of his lectures, Ann quickly cut him off. "Now, I shouldn't keep you any longer from your practice or playing street tennis, or whatever you want," she hastened to add as she saw Shinji open his mouth again. Her brain was going to explode if she had to sit through one of his hour-long droning sessions again. "Sakuno, would you like to volley some balls with me while the boys go play?" She asked as the team retreated to the sanctuary of the courts.

"Sakuno-chan is having a tennis lesson with me," Shinji said.

Ann blinked and started to back away. She might look tougher than Sakuno on the outside, even though she wasn't even half as good as Sakuno was at cooking, but Sakuno certainly had tougher guts than she had. "Ah, sou ka? Ja, I'll just… be right over there," she pointed to the courts, where the others fled as fast as they could, "I'll go see what the others are up to, okay?" At Sakuno's nod, she picked up her things and fled as well. "Just go there when you're done, Sakuno." She shouted over her shoulder, hurrying towards sanctuary.

Shinji looked thoughtful for a moment, as he too picked up his racket and guided Sakuno-chan to the nearest wall. "You know," he said as he handed her a tennis ball to practice with, "if I didn't know any better, I would say that people start running away whenever I have something to say. Do you know why that would be, Sakuno-chan? You don't think people don't like me, do you? Because I can't think of anything bad I might have done to offend them. I've never cheated anybody out of anything, as far as I could remember, and I could remember a lot of things. I think my first memory was when I was three. My kaa-san took me to a festival and I got to try catching fish with the use of a paper net. I didn't catch any fish though, because the net would break once I tried lifting the fish, the water weakened its consistency. I was upset, so kaa-san tried to pacify me by buying me cotton candy. I love cotton candy, how about you Sakuno-chan?"

"Un, I love cotton candy, too. I love how it melts in my mouth." Sakuno heartily agreed as she prepared to hit the ball.

"Bend your knees a little and straighten your shoulders," Shinji-kun instructed. When she didn't get into just the right position that he told her to adapt, he went behind her and bumped his knee against the back of her legs to get her into it, and straightened her shoulders just right to his specifications.

None of them noticed the pair that was coming up the stairs to the public courts, nor the surprise registered in the pair's faces as they happened upon the sight of Ibu Shinji behind their coach's granddaughter in a somewhat intimate position like that – with the way they were standing together, you can bet they can feel each other's body heat.

Not that Shinji was doing anything inappropriate of course, he was just giving her some advice, that's all. What are friends for, right?

_Dear Diary,_

_I wish Ann-chan and I went to the same school. If we did, Tomo-chan, Ann-chan and I would probably be the equivalent of the male freshmen trio, and we would have so much fun together. Those two are a lot a like in some ways, if you look at it closely. Ann-chan might not be as loud as Tomo-chan when it comes to cheering for their favorite tennis players, but you can see the inner strength both of them possess, and they're both really good people and great friends._

_I was a little intimidated at first, since she liked to spend a lot of time with her brother's team. It must be really nice to have a sibling. Although I could imagine how it feels to have older brothers, it must be different, having to actually grow up with one, from birth. Tachibana-san is a very caring onii-san, he reminds me greatly of Syusuke-nii. _

_The Fudomine tennis teams members are very interesting. They have a strong bond with each other, like the one Seigaku's has. It's not really fair to compare one to the other, since they're uniquely their own entities, but I think that's about the closest comparison I could make without sounding like I favor one over the other._

_I know that I go to Seigaku and should predictably favor them over everybody else. In a way, I do. Seigaku is not only my Alma mater, it feels like immediate family as well. Each tennis game I go watch and each match played feels like they're being played by one of my family members. I might not have as close a tie to the school Fudomine itself, but just as long as their opponent isn't Seigaku, I'd cheer my heart out for them as well. _

_Maybe it's because Ann-chan makes me feel so at home around them._

_Everybody is even saying that Shinji-kun and I are sure to become "superbestfriends forever for sure". Everyone is always so good to me. I've never lacked for a tennis coach before, with so many awesome tennis players at my school willing to give me advice on how to improve my form before, but now I even get advice from more people! I feel so lucky. If only I could actually put their advice to good use though…_

"Heh, Momo-senpai, I think we should go and grab that burger after all."

"What? But we're already here! You should have made up your mind earlier, Echizen! Oh hey, is that Ryuzaki?" Momoshiro Takeshi waved eagerly as he made his way toward the pair. "Oh, it's you, Shinji. Are you giving our Ryuzaki a tennis lesson? How nice of you." Momo smiled at the Fudomine Regular.

"Ah, Momo-senpai! R-Ryoma-kun," Sakuno shyly greeted, secretly happy that she met up with Ryoma-kun at the park no less. She usually didn't get to see him much on the weekends, except if they had a tournament to play or if her obaa-chan managed to bribe them with manjuus to do her a favor again.

Ryoma nodded in greeting, settling his gaze on the purple-haired boy who was staring impassively right back at him.

_Shinji-kun talks a lot, and it's always fascinating to hear what he has to say. _

"Momo-senpai, Ann-chan is over there," Sakuno pointed to where the courts were, "playing with the others."

Shinji broke his staring contest with the youngest member of Seigaku's tennis team and looked at Momoshiro. "Kamio is there as well," he warned.

"Eh? What's that supposed to mean? Am I supposed to be afraid that he's there or something? And why should I be? And Ryuzaki, why do you think that I'm here for Tachibana's little sister? I'm here to play street tennis, right Echizen?"

"Whatever," Echizen replied indifferently.

"Gee, thanks Echizen." Momo shifted his tennis gear. "I think I'll go check out what Tachibana's little sister is up to, Echizen you can stay here if you want," he took off towards the courts, leaving the three teens alone together.

"Ah Ryoma-kun! Shinji-kun is giving me advice on how to improve my tennis," Sakuno chirped happily, daring to show off her new-found tennis skills as she did a backhand serve.

_Pok._

"Her form has improved somewhat, but she keeps forgetting to keep it."

_Pok._

"She gets easily distracted," Ibu Shinji continued to murmur beside him. Ryoma wondered why the guy was telling him stuff he already knew.

_Pok._

"Still, she continues to practice though. Her determination compensates for her lack of hand and eye coordination."

_Pok._

Ryoma felt like he should contribute to the conversation somehow. "Aa," he agreed.

_Pok._

"Speaking of which, I was wondering if anybody on Seigaku cared enough to give her some tennis lessons. You know, it wouldn't hurt if anybody did. Not that I'm complaining about my having to give Sakuno-chan tennis lessons whenever I could, but I just thought that Seigaku should take more care of their own."

_Pok._

_Pok._

_Pok._

The sound of the tennis ball bouncing against the wall was starting to mirror the headache Ryoma knew was coming.

_Pok._

"I don't mind taking care of Sakuno-chan, I enjoy our lessons, and she seems to like spending time with us as well. But it makes me wonder if she really is being taken care of in Seigaku if no one even bothers to give her a few spare hours of their time to help her with her tennis. Maybe she could just transfer to Fudomine if that was the case. We always make sure to take care of our schoolmates, especially the younger ones since we don't want to repeat the cruelty the senpai-tachi showed us in our time."

_Pok._

_Pok._

Ryoma wanted to run as far away as he possibly could, for the survival of his sanity. Only pride and sheer will allowed him to remain on the spot, unflinching from the barrage of comments coming from the other guy.

"Ryuzaki, try to spread your legs just a little bit further apart and try not to bend them too much. No, no wait more, just a little more, yeah that's it. Stay in that position." He offered some advice in an effort to diverge the boy's attention away from ranting on him.

_Pok._

_Pok._

"You **do** take care of your schoolmates, do you? I believe that you and Sakuno-chan are on the same year, so you should keep an eye out for her well-being."

_Pok._

_Pok._

"Aa," Ryoma agreed, "Buchou already told us to do that."

_Pok._

_Pok._

_Pok._

"Oops! Aaaah mou!" Sakuno missed hitting the ball.

"Lower your grip on the racket a little."

"Hai!" and she started again, twin braids swinging cutely behind her.

_Pok._

_Pok._

"That's very interesting, Echizen. Your buchou reminds me of mine. Tachibana-san is a very good man. Although he never actually gave us instructions to do it, it's just sort of an unspoken agreement, seeing as how she's his little sister and everything. You know how big brothers are. Do you have any siblings, Echizen?"

_Pok._

_Pok._

"Siblings should take good care of each other. They should act as a support system to each other, because their parents wouldn't be around forever you know. They may occasionally fight and have arguments, but family is still family."

_Pok._

_Pok._

_Pok._

_Pok._

"Ann-chan is like a sister to us all. So is Sakuno-chan, since I think Ann-chan officially adopted her into their family. Not that it matters because we would gladly take care of any girl as sweet and friendly as Sakuno-chan. Tachibana-san now has two little sisters, and I think that Ann-chan considers Sakuno-chan her imouto as well. Such a headstrong girl, that Ann."

_Pok._

_POK._

_Pok._

"Girls are so different from us guys, ne Echizen? Don't you think so too? They confuse me most of the time, and they can be quite scary when mad, why just this afternoon, Ann-chan was giving us a lecture about Sakuno-chan's missing diary. Ann-chan thinks that one of us is pulling a prank on Sakuno-chan, but I don't think any of us would be mean enough to do that. I mean –"

_Pok._

"Ah, is that so? Excuse me for a minute while I go get a drink." Ryoma interrupted heading towards the soda machine and fleeing for his sanity after all.

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**Disclaimer:** Hindi akin. If I owned Prince of Tennis, would I really waste my time writing this piece of crap da ne? o.O

**Japanese words used in this chapter:**

**Ossu **-** yes **ala Kabaji

**-nii** - "hip" form of "onii-san", meaning "older brother". Also see "aniki", "onii-chan", "onii-sama" and "kuya" (lol)

And I want to spell "senpai" with an M _sempai_, but I keep checking my dictionary and it's spelled with an N so I'm going with that.

**Senpai** - senior, elder, superior

**Tensai** - prodigy, genius, naturally gifted

**Manjuu** - steamed yeast bun with filling

**Imouto** - younger sister


	3. Sakuno doko wa?

**Disclaimer: **Dapat ko bang ulitin ito nyah? I own everything Prince of Tennis… MINE, MINE, THEY'RE ALL MINE! Bwahahahaha… now back off! (clings desperately to the bishies before getting shot)

Seeing as how I haven't seen all the episodes YET and have never read a single Prince of Tennis manga, please forgive any and all inconsistencies in this story da ne. As I'm typing this, I've seen only up to episode 73 so far, and episode 87-88 at the prompting of my friend who told me that it was a chibi episode. For the sake of your sanity and mine, please consider this as a bit of an AU.

♥ **TATLO **♥

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The huge public clock read 3:02 in the afternoon.

"I can't believe Sakuno's not here yet," Tomoka silently fumed, irritated that she had to stand there and wait for her bestfriend with _her_ of all people. She couldn't believe she agreed to do this. What was she thinking when she said yes anyway?

Ann stood next to the girl, impatiently tapping her foot on the floor. She would have never agreed to come here if Sakuno hadn't insisted that she give the other girl a chance. From what she could tell, it seemed like the girl didn't like her. The feeling was mutual, she didn't need to force herself on anyone who didn't want to be friends with her, and she had enough friends already. She was just doing this for Sakuno's sake, and not for the loud-mouthed girl.

"Maybe she got lost again," they both said at the same time, eyes meeting and then looking away again, not really feeling like conversing much.

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_How had it come to this? _ Sakuno couldn't help but wonder as she sat rooted to the spot, not daring to move a single muscle, lest she disturb the sleeping person who decided to use her as a human pillow.

She looked at her stop longingly, from her position on the seat. Ann-chan and Tomo-chan were probably be there by now already, and she was late as usual. They would understand of course, because they knew her tendency to get lost a lot. She had to wonder where she was when Kami was handing out a sense of direction. She was probably stuck on a bus, acting as a pillow because she was too scared and too timid to protest otherwise.

She hoped that Tomo-chan and Ann-chan wouldn't be too mad at her for being _very_ late this time.

Sakuno let out a sigh as the mall faded out of her view.

"Mou," the girl silently cursed her luck. She really wanted to go to the newly opened Build-a-Bear Workshop store at the mall today. She saw the commercial on television and the idea of building your own teddy bear was just too good to pass up. She also thought it would be a great opportunity for her only two girl friends to get more acquainted with each other. She couldn't help but feel like they didn't like each other somehow and she wanted to resolve whatever it was that was bothering them.

It would have been easier if she didn't forget to bring her cellphone. She mentally banged her head on an imaginary wall. If her friends tried to call it, they'd be directed to her voice mail, since she forgot to unplug it from the outlet in her room.

Her left leg was starting to go numb, but she was afraid to make even the slightest movement. She wondered if how those guards at Buckingham Palace could do it. From what she saw on movies or television shows, they didn't move even when you made faces at them or attempted to make them laugh. Didn't their legs go numb like hers was doing now? How do they do it?

At least he wasn't pulling on the braid that he clutched tightly between his fingers; she glanced at the _boy_ who had intruded on her personal space. He had a very firm grip on her hair, further cementing her lack of escape routes.

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"Oy, is that you, Tachibana no imouto?" a loud voice said from behind the two girls who were trying their best to ignore each other.

"Momo-senpai?"

"Momo?"

The girls said as they turned to who it was.

Momoshiro Takeshi approached them with a friendly grin in his face. "Yo! Out shopping? I didn't know you two were acquainted." Momo turned to Tomoka, "Hey Osakada."

Ann's face soured, "We're not shopping together, and we're just waiting for Sakuno. We were supposed to go to that new Build-a-Bear Workshop that just opened on the third floor."

"That's right, I wouldn't be caught shopping with her," Tomoka jabbed a thumb in Ann's direction, "even if you paid me to anyway."

"What was that?" Ann couldn't believe the girl said that to her, and in front of Momo! If she wasn't Sakuno's friend… "Well, I wouldn't be caught shopping with you even if my life depended on it! Momo you're coming with us so that people don't assume she and I are friends or anything like that."

Startled at the sudden attitude displayed by the normally friendly girls, Momo took a minute to process what Ann just said. "What?" He blinked rapidly and scratched his head.

"You're coming with us, Momo-senpai. I don't want to be stuck waiting for Sakuno alone with this girl, since people might think she's my friend." Tomoka told her senpai, then stepped closer to him.

Ann, not to be outdone, stood on the other side of the tall Seigaku Regular and clutched his arm. "You can call it a date, just until Sakuno comes," she told Momo.

Momo felt like passing out, wondering what he had just gotten himself into. All he wanted was to go to the arcade and hang out with Kikumaru-senpai, who promised to treat him to burgers after. He didn't sign up for anything like this. "Anou…" the girls were glaring at each other across of him, and he jumped as Tomoka grabbed his other arm as well. "I'm supposed to meet Kikumaru-senpai in the arcade…"

Ann looked up at him, "So you're just going to leave me here with _her_?" Her face looked pale, her eyes sad.

Momo felt bad.

Tomoka did the same. "Momo-senpai, you can't leave us alone!" Her eyes were pleading, and he didn't really want to shove them off of his arms, their grips were tight.

"Anou…" the dunk-smash master said, at a loss for words. "I guess… I guess I could call Kikumaru-senpai and tell him I'm going to be a little delayed."

The girls brightened at the suggestion and released his arms long enough for him to dig through his pocket for his cellphone.

Scrolling through his contact list, he called Kikumaru, who answered in a few rings.

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Ah, Kikumaru-senpai? It's Momo."

"Momo-chin! Where are you? I'm in front of the arcade already." Kikumaru said impatiently.

"I'm in the entrance, near the fountain," Momo replied, "I'm sorry but I think I'm going to be delayed for a few more minutes, I'm going to accompany Osakada and Ann while waiting for Sakuno."

"Eh? Did you set up another date when you forgot that we were supposed to go to the arcade, Momo?" The acrobatics specialist sang over the phone, unable to keep himself from teasing.

Momo was blushing as he replied. "NO! It's nothing like that, Kikumaru-senpai!"

"And with TWO… no wait, THREE girls? And with Ryuzaki-chan no less? Aaah Momo, what's Ochibi going to think about that, huh?" He demanded in a chastising tone of voice.

"Ki-ku-ma-ru-sen-pai," Momo could feel even the roots of his hair blush, "I said it's NOT LIKE THAT!" He almost screamed into his cellphone.

Kikumaru burst out laughing at the other end of the line, he was imagining how embarrassed Momo probably looked by now. "Hahahahahaha, I'm just teasing you Momo, you're easier to bait than Oishi." Cat ears were almost visible from the top of his head.

Momo cleared his throat as he tried to tamper down his blush. "Is that all right, Kikumaru-senpai?"

Kikumaru didn't mind. "Yes it's okay. I'll see you in a bit, ja."

Momo faced two curious faces as he hung up the phone.

"What did Kikumaru-senpai say?" Tomoka asked, wondering why Momo-senpai had a furious blush on his face.

"Ah, he said it was okay for me to stay here for a while. He's probably going to go play until I come."

"So you have a date with him after your date with me?" Ann said casually.

The heat crept up Momo's cheeks again. "We're not on a date!"

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"Such a cute couple."

"Young people these days…"

"Aw, isn't that kawaii?"

Sakuno couldn't help but blush as snippets of people's comments floated her way. Some of them would blatantly stare, some would discreetly observe from the side of their eyes, and some just didn't care.

She wished they wouldn't stare at her so much.

_Why me?_

The person – er –_ boy_ – with his head on her lap looked a little familiar, as if she'd seen him before, but she couldn't exactly put her finger on it.

_He'll wake up in a few minutes._

"That's so sweet..."

"I wish my boyfriend was as sweet as that."

Sakuno wanted to cover her face with her hands. _He's not my boyfriend! I don't even know him!_

_Just a few more minutes and by the time the bus stops at the mall again, I'd be able to get off._

She couldn't really blame him. The motion of the moving bus was sleep-inducing. It also wasn't his fault that she chose to sit at the very back of the bus, which he already occupied.

It was bad enough that she took the wrong bus the first time.

She took little notice of the boy at first, whose head was dropping every so often, indicating that he was probably half-asleep or in dreamland already. The motions of the bus would push him forwards, backwards and sideward. He had more balance asleep than she had awake.

She couldn't help but glance at his sleepy dance to the tune of the bus' rhythm, and got slightly concerned whenever he would pitch forward, as if to sprawl on the floor. He managed to stay seated in his precarious position.

After a couple of stops that played havoc on her busybody self, Sakuno scooted closer and reached out. Her intent was to at least get him into a more comfortable and safer position that wouldn't send him flying if the bus driver suddenly hit the brakes.

His shoulders were broad, his arms were probably the size of her legs. He had unruly black hair that gave him a roguish look despite his slumber.

She wondered what color his eyes were.

She was going to shift him to the other side, nearer the window and the seat in front of him, and maybe shift his legs a bit so they weren't awkwardly twisted in that angle.

She managed to partially move him over just as the bus turned at a corner, causing him to fall towards her, with his head in her lap.

Sakuno blushed; a furious crimson staining her pale cheeks at their position. Never has she been _this_ close to a boy before, and a total stranger at that.

The stranger seemed to like his new position, a lot, if his snuggling into her leg was any indication. His legs curled on top of the long backseat as he assumed a fetal position and his right hand gripped the hem of her skirt, nose rubbing against it.

She knew she should have awakened him and asked him to let her go, but when she reached out to shake his shoulder, a long braid fell forward, tickling his nose with it. Long fingers uncurled as he grabbed the braid with his left hand, fisting around it.

Too embarrassed by the closeness they shared, Sakuno figured he'd wake by the time the bus made its stop at her destination. Her voice refused to cooperate whenever she would decide to take the initiative to wake him up.

So she was stuck. At least for now.

The next time the bus stopped at the mall, he would wake for sure and she would be free.

As the rocking motion of the moving vehicle lulled her to sleep, one thought was in her head.

_I hope Ann-chan and Tomo-chan won't be **too** mad at me for being so late…_

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"Yo, Momo!" Kikumaru greeted as he spotted his tall friend.

The three people waiting for Sakuno in the fountain turned to look at the newcomer.

"Kikumaru-senpai!" Greeted both Tomoka and Momo. Ann gave him a friendly smile which he returned with a full-blown grin, making Momo be wary as to why he was here.

"I thought you were going to wait for me in the arcades?" Momo couldn't help but ask.

"I got bored," Kikumaru replied, hands held behind his head. "It's not fun to play alone nyah," he pouted. "You should know that Momo, you're here double dating and waiting for your third date, while you left me dateless!" He accused, cat ears and all.

"W-what!" Momo sputtered. "I'm not on a date, Kikumaru-senpai!"

"Yes you are, you're on a date with me until Sakuno arrives, don't you remember?" Ann reminded him.

The gleam in Kikumaru's eye rivaled that of Inui when he was trying to force down one of his juices down the Seigaku Regulars' throats. "And he didn't even tell me!" He turned to Ann. "Momo was keeping it a secret from me, his beloved senpai!" He shook his head in disappointment. "And now he looks like he doesn't even want me here," he quivered his bottom lip for effect.

"It's nothing like that, Kikumaru-senpai! If you don't mind waiting, we can all wait together if you want."

"Yay!" Kikumaru practically purred in satisfaction, like a cat that just got some cream. "So we're waiting for Ryuzaki-chan?"

The girls nodded.

A glance at the clock again and "She's only about thirty minutes late." Ann said.

"Which is nothing to be alarmed about," Tomoka finished as the group lapsed into a companionable silence.

A couple of minutes passed in silence before Kikumaru started fidgeting.

He began to tap his foot impatiently after the five minute mark.

The redhead was pacing in front of the group after ten minutes.

And at fifteen, he couldn't take waiting anymore. "I'm hungry, aren't you guys just a little bit hungry?"

"No, not really, I could wait until Sakuno gets here to eat." Ann shrugged.

Tomoka shook her head. "Yeah, kinda, but we have to wait for Sakuno, Kikumaru-senpai!"

"I could use something to eat right about now," Momo said as he nodded, "but if we leave, Ryuzaki-chan might come."

"So why don't we just get some pretzels and drinks and eat them here?" Kikumaru whined. Waiting here doing nothing was boring.

"I guess we could do that…" Momo agreed, he could use something to eat and drink right about now.

"Great, now go get them while I go wait with the girls here, eh Momo-chin!"

Momo's eyes bugged out. "What!" He was tricked!

"Go ahead," Kikumaru waved him off with his hand.

Momo's shoulders slumped as he took everyone's order and then trotted off to retrieve the food.

Sakuno was nowhere to be found even after the group finished their light snack.

She was over an hour late by then, which made the girls a little bit uneasy. Usually, if Sakuno was this late, she'd call them and apologize, explain the reason why she was running late.

As if by some unspoken agreement, Ann fished out her phone and dialed Sakuno's number, getting her voicemail instead. "Sakuno, when you hear this message, call me back ASAP. You didn't forget about our date, did you? Even a couple of your senpai are here with me and Osakada waiting for you." She paused, frowning. "You didn't get lost again, did you? Anyway, just call me back and let me know where you are."

"Was that Sakuno's voicemail?" Tomoka asked after Ann hung up.

"Yes," Ann nodded. "I was getting worried…" She trailed off, looking thoughtful, "Isn't it odd that I get redirected to her voicemail when she would normally call us to apologize for being late?"

Tomoka looked thoughtful. "Maybe her battery died?"

"Or maybe she forgot to bring her phone," Momo said.

"Or," Kikumaru's eyes widened, "she got kidnapped on her way here and the kidnappers turned her cellphone off so we couldn't trace the signal to find her!"

"Kikumaru-senpai!" Momo scolded, "I'm sure that's not what happened," he said as he patted the girls' shoulders to assure them.

"How do you know for sure, Ryuzaki-chan isn't here right now, is she?" The redhead exclaimed, knee-deep in his belief at the possibility. "I should call Oishi, maybe he knows!" Nimble hands didn't have to scroll through his contact list, he had his doubles partner's number memorized.

"Moshi-moshi?"

"Oishi!" Kikumaru basically screamed into the receiver, "Ryuzaki-chan has been kidnapped!"

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A huffing and puffing Oishi glared at his doubles partner, "That's _huff_ not _huff_ a very _huff puff_ nice thing to do, Eiji." _Puff puff puff_. He got all worked up for nothing.

He was winded from the impromptu sprint he did after receiving such news.

Oishi was out shopping some food for his tropical fish on the same exact mall Kikumaru and the others were waiting at the moment he received the call. However, the pet shop was on the _other_ side of the _other_ wing of the mall, which was a considerable distance away from the fountain. And it was all for nothing!

Eiji had given him false alarm. The girl wasn't kidnapped, she was just late.

"But Oishi, this is an emergency!" Kikumaru exclaimed loudly, causing several people to glance at their direction. "What if she's stuck in a locked room right now, with nowhere to run? What if someone kidnapped her while she was waiting for the bus?"

"Eiji." Oishi warned, the girls looked stricken at the possibility of what could have happened to her friend.

"Maybe she was attacked by vicious dogs!"

"Eiji!"

"Or mauled by killer bunnies!"

"Ei-ji!"

"I didn't know there were killer bunnies in Japan?"

Oishi shot Momo an annoyed look. "There aren't. Eiji, will you stop that?"

"But Oishi!" His doubles partners clutched his shirt in panic, "What if she got kidnapped by the Yakuza!"

Ann and Tomoka gasped.

Oishi had a pained look on his face.

"Maybe… she got lost on the road of life and had to help out a grandma from a tree..?" Momo offered, earning him a glare from his fukubuchou.

"I see that Eiji's not the only one who has been watching too much anime lately." Oishi pinched the bridge of his nose in dismay. "Those situations are worse than Echizen's excuse." He was referring to the 'I had to help a pregnant lady' excuse by their teammate.

"But Oishi!" Kikumaru exclaimed, waving his hands in the air like a deranged penguin on crack, "That _really_ happened to _you_, so what if it happens to Ryuzaki-chan, too?"

The fukubuchou considered this for a short moment. "I think we can safely assume that Ryuzaki-chan didn't get attacked by vicious dogs," Kikumaru opened his mouth, "OR," Oishi continued, "get mauled by killer bunnies. Much less getting kidnapped by the Yakuza," he couldn't help but sigh in defeat, "while helping a pregnant grandma from a tree."

"A pregnant lady AND a grandma from a tree," Kikumaru dared to correct.

"**Either way**," Oishi ignored him, "maybe she's just lost. Took the wrong bus or something…"

"That sounds more like Sakuno," Ann agreed, looking a little relieved.

"But what about the bunnies?" Kikumaru insisted.

"What bunnies?"

The group turned to look at the newcomer, Fuji Syusuke. He was dressed casually, with a sweater wrapped around his shoulders, giving him a preppy look.

"Ryuzaki-chan got mauled by attack bunnies when she got lost on the road of life because of vicious killer dogs who work for the Yakuza that chased her while helping a pregnant lady get to the hospital after rescuing a grandma who was stuck on top of a tree!"

Fuji's crystal blue eyes opened in alarm, concern flashing through them and then closed again, his brow knitting in confusion. "… what?"

"Ryuzaki-mmm!" Kikumaru's explanation was cut off by Oishi's hand clamping on top of his mouth.

"It seems like Ryuzaki-chan was supposed to meet Tachibana and Osakada here today but she's running a lot late." Oishi tightened his grip on his struggling partner. "Past one hour now exactly… and disregard anything Eiji said, especially the one about the bunnies."

Kikumaru glared at his partner as he was released, but said nothing.

Fuji considered this. "She has a habit of being late… maybe she took the wrong bus. Did you try calling her cellphone?"

Several heads nodded.

"We get redirected to her voicemail," Tomoka supplied.

"Low battery probably."

"Or she forgot to take it with her."

"I still say bunnies." Kikumaru bristled at the glares he received. "What? You have a problem with bunnies?"

"There is little to no possibility that Ryuzaki would be attacked by killer bunnies in modern day Japan, in the middle of the city, Eiji."

Almost everyone clutched their chest in surprise at the sound of Inui's voice. Fuji was the only one who didn't jump like a startled rabbit at the sudden appearance of the data man.

"When did **you** get here, Inui?" Oishi asked, massaging his poor heart.

"Just a few minutes ago, why?" Inui adjusted his glasses as he looked at his notebook. "Furthermore, the chances of Ryuzaki getting kidnapped by the Yakuza are less than .03 percent, not counting the probability that someone she gets into contact with is somehow connected to the organization. And the likelihood of her being harmed by killer dogs and vicious bunnies are lesser than the Yakuza percentage."

"Why are you here, Inui-senpai?" Momo couldn't help but ask.

"I had to purchase additional notebooks and backup pens from the bookstore," Seigaku's data man explained as he held up a bag printed with the bookstore's logo. "I couldn't help but hear your conversation and have already calculated the facts, reaching the conclusion that Ryuzaki is lost. There is a 90 percent chance that she took the wrong bus. She probably realized her folly approximately thirty to forty minutes later and got off of it, an 80 percent chance that she took the correct one after that."

"So you're saying that she should be here…"

"… Any minute now," Inui confidently answered, all the data already calculated in his brilliant mind.

"Can your data tell us why we get redirected to her voicemail, Inui-senpai?" A worried Tomoka asked.

Inui looked at his notes. "There is a 75 percent chance that her battery ran out, and an 88 percent probability that she forgot to bring her phone with her, in her haste to get out of her place of residence."

"So we just wait for her here, right?" Momo voiced out what almost everybody was thinking. "She'll be here any minute now, right?"

"Right," several voices agreed.

"Hey," Fuji said, "is that Tezuka?"

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**kouhai** – "junior at work or school".

**Thank you for all your reviews.** 8) They inspire me to get off of my lazy butt and update. XD

**Shameless plug:** Marami bang noypi dito? Kung gusto nyo, nasa LJ din ako. Usap din tayo doon, masaya kaya. 8)


	4. Small World

**Disclaimer: **Still hindi akin.

♥ A P A T ♥

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Tezuka wondered how he got roped into this. He was minding his own business, on his way home from checking out some new bait that the fishing store carried. Contrary to popular belief, he actually knew where the mall was and even shopped here with his parents every once in a while. Not that he would go around letting random people or even any of his teammates know about it though.

Eiji proclaimed it lucky that he passed by, Fuji spotting him right off the bat. How Fuji still manages to have perfect eyesight despite his eyes being closed more than half of the time eluded him. Tezuka didn't have any choice but to join his teammates, schoolmate and friend of Sakuno while they waited for her.

Why they all had to wait for her together, he didn't know.

Inui was probably taking this chance to gather more data. That man tries his best not to get anything past him and Tezuka suspected that hardly anything ever does get past him.

Oishi is here because Eiji called him and well… he's Oishi. Oishi wouldn't be Oishi if he didn't look out for every kitten, puppy and pony within the fifty mile radius of anything belonging to Seigaku.

Momo is friends with the Tachibana girl, so of course he was going to wait with her. A real man never abandons a girl in need. And Momo is nothing but a real gentleman. That's why a lot of people liked him.

Eiji is flitting and running circles around them because his outing with Momo was postponed. "We were going to play some DDR but now I no longer feel like it," was what he said. Despite his cheer, you can tell that he was concerned for their coach's granddaughter.

Fuji was staying because he was concerned about the little girl whom he seemed to have taken under his wing. Hm…

Tezuka stayed because he decided he was going to stay. He also cared about what happens to Sakuno, even if no one else would guess from his unreadable facial expressions, but Kikumaru's possible scenarios were starting to make his head hurt.

Perhaps if he tried hard enough, he could block out Eiji's incessant chatter.

"Nyah minna, look at this!" Kikumaru said as he tried to walk the edge of the fountain on his hands.

Or not.

"Eiji, be careful, you might fall in!" Worry was evident in Oishi's face as he was holding Kikumaru's shirt up, since it fell to pool at his arms, blocking his vision.

"Aaaah!" Kikumaru screamed as he lost his balance.

"Eiji!"

"Kikumaru-senpai!"

"Hehe, just kidding nyah!" He righted himself, gaining his balance. "As if I'm _really_ going to fall into the fountain, Oishi." He rolled his eyes.

Oishi looked like he wanted to bang his head against the nearest wall. Ann and Tomoka clapped involuntarily with the other spectators, impressed by Eiji's balance.

Tezuka bit the inside of his cheek from keeping against barking out orders for his team to do laps, his nerves were stretched near its limit, but if not for Kikumaru's antics, the group would be hip-deep in worry about now, especially since it's starting to get dark outside.

All of them with cellphones, at one point or another, tried to contact Sakuno and failed.

Inui declared that the girl most probably has her cellphone off and it only increased their worry. They thought about calling her family to inform them of it, but thought it best to keep it to themselves for now.

"There's no use worrying Ryuzaki-sensei until we know for sure what happened," Tezuka's voice of reason convinced them.

Momo suggested that they do a search for her, and Tezuka dispersed the group into pairs of two – Inui with Momo, Oishi with Eiji, him with Fuji – to scout the mall while Osakada and Tachibana stayed at the fountain to wait, just in case Sakuno came.

They didn't find any sign of Sakuno, thirty minutes later, but Tachibana's little sister took the time to call reinforcements, which arrived in the form of one Kamio Akira and Ann's brother, Tachibana Kippei.

The two of them had to cancel their plans for a movie and some popcorn after Ann explained the situation to them. Who knew Tachibana-buchou was susceptible to younger sibling blackmail?

Since both their captains were there, Momo and Kamio settled on glaring at each other over the top of Ann's and Tomoka's heads quietly, with occasional heated words exchanged.

_At least someone looks like he's having fun._ Tezuka thought as he glanced at Inui, who was scribbling away on one of his newly bought data books, muttering "Ii data" every once in a while.

"Isn't this a bit large for a little girl's entourage?" Tachibana was in the same position Tezuka was, doing an imitation of a telephone pole with his arms crossed across his chest, and he didn't even look at Tezuka when he asked the question.

"Perhaps," Tezuka allowed, as if he was going to admit anything out loud. What would become of his image if he was easy to bait? "Don't you have somewhere else to go, Fuji?" Why was Fuji at the mall – okay, his preppy clothes probably originated here – but he didn't carry any bags when he herded Tezuka to the little meeting.

"I was on my way to see something when I spotted Eiji and Oishi." Fuji didn't elaborate.

"And I don't feel like going to the arcade anymore," Eiji volunteered. "Neither does Momo, but I think it's because he found a new date."

"I'm not on a date, Kikumaru-senpai! How can I be on a date when there are others with us?"

"It's called a group date, Momo-chin!"

"My fish don't need to be fed until later tonight," Oishi said - his bag of fish food was on the floor.

_Scribble. Scribble._ "I thought it would be a good time to gather data." _Scribble._

Tezuka silently thanked the fact that his mother had stopped accompanying him to buy clothes ever since he made it as the buchou. He shuddered to think what the tennis data man would be writing about _him _if he ever saw him shopping with his mom.

The afternoon went by in a blur. A group of teenagers hanging out at the mall wasn't a rare sight, so no one really paid them any attention when Kikumaru behaved himself and prattled about anything and everything under the sun.

The two captains exchanged polite thoughts, Fuji giving his opinion on their conversation once in a while. Oishi would even join them in between looking out after Eiji like a worried mama to her young, diffuse anything heated exchanged between Momo and Kamio, and hover over the girls, assuring them that everything was alright.

And Inui… well, he was busy gathering data as usual.

This continued like a well-oiled machine until Kikumaru jabbed an accusatory finger at Inui's direction. "Inui, you lied to us!" He looked upset, "You said she would be here any minute now and it's almost dark, yet she's still not here!"

"Actually, Eiji-senpai, I think the sun set already," Momo said, looking at the clock worriedly. "It's past six now."

Inui frowned at his green notebook. Why did the data fail him?

"I'm sure it was just a slight miscalculation." Oishi was worried, but he tried not to show it.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Kamio? Ann and I aren't on a date!" Frustrated hands pulled on his spiked hair. "And if we were, what difference does it make anyway? Her brother is here and even _he_ doesn't seem to mind, so why are you breathing down my neck?"

"Because I don't trust you. You're too familiar with Ann-chan."

"Gah! Whatever, we're not dating and that's the end of the story, okay?"

_Momoshiro and Kamio can argue about the same topic for several hours._ Inui wrote on his notebook.

"I have my eye on you."

"Ooooh, I'm so scared!" Momo taunted. "And I also have my eye on – hey, Echizen!" Momo waved at someone behind Kamio.

"Is it The-Seigaku-Tennis-Club-Goes-To-The-Mall Day or something?" Kamio thought how only that dual-personality guy and that snake guy were the only ones missing and Seigaku would have its entire Boys' Tennis Club at the mall right now.

Ryoma paused as someone called out his name, then looked like a cornered cat when he realized who it was. "Momo-senpai?" Instincts were telling him to run away as fast as he could and go home, but he saw several other senpai and "Buchou?" Did someone forget to tell him the tennis club had an outing?

"Echizen," Tezuka, Fuji, Inui and Oishi greeted.

"Ochibi! Nyah is that really you? Yay, kochi, kochi! You can stay with us while we wait for Ryuzaki-chan!" Kikumaru glomped the younger boy, almost buckling him with his weight.

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Atobe Keigo was bored. He never shopped in these kinds of malls, only commoners did and the great Atobe Keigo was no ordinary commoner. So what was he doing here, you ask? Well, the answer is simple – he was performing an act of public service to the masses. The masses didn't shop where he normally did, and he didn't want to deprive anyone of the greatness that was him. So every once in a while, he would make it a note to mingle with the ordinary folks and frequent their usual 'hangouts'.

Today was just a normal day for him, Kabaji by his side. He didn't really mind the occasional fan that would stop to ask him for an autograph or take a picture with him – he was such a kind and giving person. And today proved that his public service acts didn't go unnoticed by karma!

The hairs on the back of Tezuka's neck stood in attention, as if foretelling impending doom, just as a pompous voice shouted out. "Oh Tezuka! I didn't know Ore-sama would be seeing you here." The students from Seigaku and Fudomine were greeted with a brilliant smirk from the captain of the Hyotei Gakuen team. "Is that Tachibana Kippei I see? What is this, are Seigaku and Fudomine joining forces and plotting against the other schools? Why wasn't Ore-same invited to this conference? This is an outrage! Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu." The giant automatically agreed.

"Maybe they're plotting against us and Ore-sama, aren't they, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"Because the other schools are afraid of our superior skills and prowess, ne Kabaji?"

"Ossu," Kabaji continued to agree.

A proverbial sweatdrop hung on top of the heads of the people in the group. "We're not planning anything against the other schools, Atobe." Tezuka replied.

"If the Monkey King's so great, how come he's shopping at the mall?" Tezuka leveled a look at Echizen. "I'm just wondering, Buchou." He shrugged his shoulders in indifference.

"If you must know, gaki, Ore-sama graces places Ore-sama doesn't usually go to as an act of public service to the masses." The size of his ego couldn't even fit the massive mall. "It would be a shame to deprive them of Ore-sama's brilliance otherwise."

"… right," Echizen muttered under his breath. "Whatever you say, Monkey King."

"Echizen."

Ryoma tipped his hat downward and tried to ignore the flamboyant Hyotei Captain and his faithful sidekick. Just when you think your day couldn't get any worse…

"As I was saying, Tezuka," Atobe continued, "what would the captains of Seigaku and Fudomine be doing together if not to concoct something?"

Tachibana cleared his throat. "I assure you we're not plotting anything against anyone, Atobe-san. We're here waiting for a friend of ours."

Atobe raised a perfect brow as he surveyed the people waiting. "It takes _this many_ to wait for _one _person?" The thought that someone had a bigger entourage than him was insulting. "This person must be very special and Ore-sama has to meet this person to see if he or she is indeed worthy. Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"You don't have to wait here, Monkey King." If he was going to be stuck here waiting for Little Miss Clumsy, he needed an outlet for his irritation and it might as well be the stupid, pompous son of a monkey. _Why_ did they all have to wait for her anyway?

"Ore-sama doesn't remember asking for your permission, kid."

Fuji spoke up before their bantering grated more on Tezuka's nerves. "The more the merrier, ne, Echizen?" He smiled at the kid, daring him to disagree.

Echizen took note of the smile and looked away. "Che. Whatever, I don't really care." _I don't even know why I'm waiting out of my free will in the first place._ Why was Fuji-senpai so concerned anyway?

_Dear Diary,_

_Today I was informed that I'm going to get a new tutor. My grades are okay all around, but I'm having a little difficulty in English. I don't think I'm the only one, because I hear a lot of my classmates complaining about that subject as well. I think I'm just lucky enough to have parents who care enough about my education to enroll me in a tutor slash big-sibling program. _

_I heard it serves as double extra curricular activities for the senior who takes on the job, and it doesn't hurt the kouhai either. Imagine my surprise (and pleasure) when it turned out to be none other than Fuji Syusuke…_

He shot a glare at Fuji-senpai. He would bet his most prized tennis racket that he was better in English than Fuji-senpai, so why didn't she come to him for help with homework they shared? What was so special about Fuji Syusuke?

"So tell Ore-sama more about this _person_ we're waiting here for."

"I don't recall anyone inviting you to wait with us, Monkey King."

"It's a schoolmate of ours, Ryuzaki Sakuno." Inui answered.

"Ore-sama is waiting for a girl? A girl…" He turned to Tezuka, "Are we waiting for your _girlfriend_, Tezuka? Why didn't you tell Ore-sama sooner?"

"She's not my girlfriend, Atobe."

Atobe seemed not to hear him. "Hmmmm… Ore-sama didn't know you were romantically linked to anyone, Tezuka. This is new information. Right Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"Ryuzaki is not the buchou's girlfriend, Monkey King. Didn't you hear it the first time?"

"Ore-sama thought tennis was your one and only passion, Tezuka. I guess Ore-sama thought wrong." Atobe wasn't listening to them. "Is she beautiful? She must be, if you asked her to be your girlfriend."

"Sakuno-chan isn't Tezuka's girlfriend, Atobe." Fuji tried to reason with him. Maybe if they repeated it enough, it would get through to him.

"And Fuji calls her so familiarly? What is this? Do you have some competition for the affections of your girlfriend, Tezuka?"

"Tezuka isn't dating Ryuzaki-chan, Atobe." Oishi told him as Kikumaru laughed somewhere in the background.

"And you kept it a secret from even your fukubuchou? Tezuka, you sly dog."

Kikumaru's laughter escalated, he was now using Oishi to keep from falling to the floor with his mirth.

"I used to think monkeys were smart animals." Ryoma quipped. He didn't like it that the Monkey King had gone and assumed Ryuzaki to be the buchou's girlfriend. Even if the buchou denied it, he wasn't denying it hard enough in Ryoma's opinion. He looked at Momo-senpai.

Momo shrugged. "I'd tell him Tezuka-buchou isn't Ryuzaki's boyfriend but I doubt if he'll listen to me."

"Well, Tezuka? You haven't answered Ore-sama's question yet. It seems like Tezuka is deliberately avoiding the question, right Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

Tezuka blinked hard. _Must not strangle Atobe… I must not strangle Atobe… must not strangle Atobe_… "And what question would that be?"

"Ore-sama would like to know if your girlfriend is beautiful. Is she pretty? Ore-sama would assume that she is." He declared haughtily. Tezuka wondered why Atobe asked him a question that he decided to answer himself anyway. "As Ore-sama's rival in tennis, Ore-sama wouldn't expect any less of you." He nodded, as if he reached a conclusion all on his own. "If you get an ugly girlfriend, Ore-sama's reputation will be tainted as well." No one but Atobe could see the connection. "Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"Sakuno is not Tezuka-san's girlfriend." Ann jumped into the discussion, "And she's NOT ugly either!" Tomoka nodded in total agreement beside her.

Atobe looked at her quizzically. "You look familiar." A manicured finger tapped his chiseled face, "Has Ore-sama seen you somewhere before?"

"You tried to force her on a date before, boke!" Kamio stepped forward, shielding Ann behind his back.

Atobe blinked at his outburst. "Ore-sama did? Ore-sama doesn't remember doing such a thing."

_This shit is bananas_

_B-A-N-A-N-A-S_

_This shit is bananas_

_B-A-N-A-N-A-S_

Ann's cellphone rang, distracting them as she dug for it in her pocket. "Moshi-moshi? Ah SAKUNO!" All eyes turned to her, the relief they felt was quickly replaced by curiosity. "You what?" Ann shrieked. "And then what?" Even Ryoma wondered what the 'what' she was talking about. "Oh, and then, oh, okay. Just as long as you're safe. We thought you were kidnapped or something!"

"Is she okay?" Tomoka asked Ann, eager for some news of what happened to her friend. Why did Sakuno call Ann instead of her? She pushed the green-eyed monster rearing its head at her aside, curious for any news of Sakuno.

"You're where? Ah, that's only a bus stop away. We'll wait for you here, okay. Be careful Sakuno, don't get lost again!" Ann advised as she hung up.

She looked up to face several expectant faces. "Well?" Atobe demanded, "What happened to Tezuka's girlfriend?"

"She's not buchou's girlfriend, Monkey King." Ryoma muttered once again.

"She was, um, _detained_, for a bit, but everything is fine now and she's on her way here. She forgot her cellphone at home," the girl frowned at the unfamiliar number that appeared on her caller ID, "but someone was kind enough to lend her his cellphone to call."

"Explains why she wasn't able to call before," Inui pushed his glasses higher on the bridge of his nose as he scribbled on his notebook.

Ryoma adjusted his white cap impatiently. "Can I go home now?"

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"Sorry about that," a slightly embarrassed Kirihara Akaya apologized once again. He considered himself a confident guy, but anyone in his position would be embarrassed right about now.

It was pleasing to wake up from a great nap, and even better to discover that your slumbering pillow is a cute girl. Very disorienting, but pleasing at the same time. Lucky, too!

After waking the cute girl up, the girl repeatedly apologized to _him_, which threw him off track. In his mind, he was solely at fault for whatever happened, but the girl made it easier for him to dig out of the hole that he crawled into.

Sakuno was her name. She was supposed to meet her friends at the mall and go 'build a bear'. She explained to him how she took the wrong bus the first time and ended up taking his bus before he detained her.

Akaya stretched long arms upwards. "That was the best nap I've had in a long time." He grinned as Sakuno blushed. Was that rose tint her natural color? Did she blush easily or was it just with him?

"You don't have to do this, Akaya-kun," Akaya insisted that they were way past formalities already, seeing as how they _napped_ together "I know my way from here, the mall is the next stop and-"

"Nonsense, Sakuno-chan!" Akaya interrupted, waving her excuse away. "The least I could do is make sure you get there safely. What if your friends already left?"

Sakuno bit her lip. "Then I could just go home and call them to apologize. I know how to get home from the mall," she assured him.

"What kind of man would I be if I let a lady go home alone? It's already dark," he pointed at the darkness outside the bus. "You can use my phone, if you want." He pushed his phone into her accepting hands as she thanked him profusely.

He listened to her sweet voice explain something to the person on the other line. No other female he knew blushed as often as this one did. She was really petite compared to him and her pigtails made her look really young. She wasn't someone you'd take one look at and fall in love with immediately either, but Akaya found himself liking the girl more and more each time he looked. Her honey-colored hair looked as soft as it felt; he wondered why she kept it in those girlish braids instead of allowing it to flow freely. Her huge brown eyes had a reddish tint to them, brimming with innocence.

"Thanks for allowing me to use your phone." Sakuno thanked him again and then looked at her feet. The boy was really cute when he smiled like that.

"It's the least I could do after bothering you."

"Oh but you weren't a bother at all, Akaya-kun! I – I had a nice nap as well, so it wasn't any bother." Sakuno sounded embarrassed.

"And it's not a bother for me to make sure you meet your friends safely." Akaya replied with a bright smile, wondering how he could ask for her number without scaring her off.

They stood up and stepped off the bus when they reached their destination, a cool breeze greeting them as they made their way through the crowd. _How do I get her number without looking desperate? _If only they taught them that at Rikkai Dai… Come to think of it… what school did she go to? Did she already have a boyfriend? She didn't mention any boyfriend, but then who would mention her boyfriend to a stranger they've just met, right?

Sakuno squealed happily when they approached the fountain, interrupting his internal dialogue. "There they are!" She broke out into a full blown grin and attack glomped two girls who were about the same age as she was. Akaya's eyes widened and his eyebrows shot to the ceiling when he identified the people lounging by the fountain.

Disregarding the three girls who were acting like they haven't seen each other in years, Akaya zeroed in on three people respectively – Tezuka Kunimitsu, Tachibana Kippei and Atobe Keigo..? What was _he_ doing here? If he wasn't mistaken, that was the well-known tennis prodigy Fuji Syusuke as well.

"Wow," he felt like doing a double take. Could his day _get_ any luckier?

"Ryuzaki-chan!" Kikumaru joined the squealing girls as he hugged Sakuno like a long lost daughter. "I'm so glad you're safe, Oishi was very worried and he thought that you were kidnapped by the Yakuza!" He whispered loudly.

"I did NOT!" Oishi protested indignantly.

"What took you so long, Sakuno?" Tomoka demanded. Ann shared a glance with Sakuno, which didn't leave the observation of their senpai-tachi. Ann was brimming with questions about the guy – the _cute_ guy Sakuno was with, but she wisely kept her mouth shut.

"It's a long story, Tomo-chan… um, I'll tell you all about it later, okay?" Sakuno's eyes widened as she saw who was there with them. She was surprised to see Kikumaru-senpai here but she didn't expect - "Buchou?" Sakuno blinked. What were they doing here? "Syusuke-nii… Inui-senpai… Oishi-senpai… Momo-senpai… Kippei no nii-chan… Kamio-kun…" She counted off, not really believing her eyes. "Ryoma-kun?" What were they all doing here? She also saw the Hyotei Captain and his sidekick, but she didn't really know them personally.

Ryoma was irked at the order that Ryuzaki listed their names off. He was last on the list, almost like he was just an afterthought. "Yo," came his grumpy reply from beneath the white cap.

Atobe studied the girl he correctly assumed they have been waiting for. She was… short. She had… pigtails… and she was young. Very young, was this girl even out of swaddling yet? "Tezuka," Atobe said, still not taking his eyes off of the girl, "your girlfriend is rather… young, isn't she?"

Kirihara's brows flew through the roof at the statement. "Sakuno-chan is Tezuka's girlfriend?" He couldn't help but ask incredulously. Ryoma visibly stiffened, Fuji frowned and Tezuka's brow raised a record high – almost a scant centimeter.

"Excuse me," Fuji smiled amicably, "but who are you again?" And why are you so familiar with Sakuno-chan, he wanted to ask. It took some time for him to convince Sakuno to address him as -nii instead of –senpai and for them to fall into being "Sakuno-chan" and "Syusuke-nii" with each other, so who was this stranger who acted so familiar with her?

"Ah, sumimasen!" Kirihara grinned almost maniacally as he bowed respectfully. "I'm Kirihara Akaya. Nice to meet you."

"The tennis ace from Rikkai Dai," Inui informed them, scribbling on his data book.

"Weren't you that guy who went to _spy_ on our practices a while back?" Kikumaru accused, he could remember it clearly now. "Tezuka made us run laps because of you!" He wailed at the tall Rikkai Dai Regular.

_Busted! _Akaya laughed nervously. "I wasn't really spying, _spying_… I was just... lost! That's all!" He tried not to cringe at the suspicious looks they were giving him.

"I don't recall that was what you said that day." The Seigaku Captain frowned at him. Behind him, his Regulars looked united against the intruder, and even the other two captains were giving Kirihara disapproving looks.

"Tezuka, you still haven't answered Ore-sama's question!"

"Were you the reason for Sakuno-chan's tardiness?" Asked one tensai to another, blue eyes glittering dangerously.

"Tezuka?"

"What did you do to our Ryuzaki-chan?" _Hiss_ went the redheaded acrobatic cat, showing his claws.

"Tezuka, did you hear what Ore-sama said?"

"He didn't do anything, Syusuke-nii, Kikumaru-senpai." Sakuno felt like she needed to stand up for him, with all of her senpai-tachi ganging up on him like that.

"Are you okay, Ryuzaki?" Oishi checked his kouhai for injuries, who knew what the boy did to her if she had been with him all this time. Maybe he decided to take his spying on a higher level and was now using Ryuzaki as some kind of bait.

Sakuno blushed, feeling like a piece of meat or a dog in a competition as Oishi-senpai twirled her around for inspection. "I'm okay, Oishi-senpai."

"Ore-sama believes that Tezuka is avoiding the question, isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu!"

"Did he try to kidnap you, Ryuzaki?" Momo jumped into the fray, looking Sakuno over with a critical eye for any injuries missed by Oishi.

"No one tried to kidnap me, Momo-senpai." Sakuno twisted the hem of her skirt nervously. "Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Tezuka?"

"Well, you were very, **very** late, Sakuno-chan." Fuji's eyes softened. "You can't blame us for worrying." Inui scribbled furiously into his notebook.

"Next time, you should make sure not to forget your cellphone." Tachibana Kippei scolded gently.

"Yeah!" Ann and Tomoka agreed. Tomoka was still a little stung as to why Sakuno called Ann instead of her, but she was more curious about the boy that Sakuno brought with her now.

"Tezuka?"

Akaya wondered if he stepped into the twilight zone. All he wanted was a phone number and now here he was, surrounded by some of the tennis players he actually admired and was now seeing them in a new light. Were Fudomine, Seigaku and Hyotei on such good terms that they often hung out with each other? He calculated how good of a data this would be for his team and wondered how he could stay longer so he could gather more data and his first priority – the phone number.

"Tezuka?" The boy bravely dared to poke the stoic captain.

"Yes, what is it Atobe?" Tezuka's tone was very resigned with maybe just a drop of irritation showing through.

"Aren't you going to answer Ore-sama? Well that's kind of rude! Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu!"

"How many times do we have to tell you, Monkey King? Ryuzaki is **not** the buchou's girlfriend!" Was it possible to have high blood pressure at the age of twelve?

"And Sakuno-chan is still a baby," Fuji smiled cordially at Atobe. "She can't date anyone yet."

"Yeah, what Fuji said! She's only a freshman! She can't have a boyfriend yet! That'd be like… Tezuka robbing the blind!"

"Cradle, Eiji." Oishi corrected. Kikumaru looked puzzled. "It's 'robbing the cradle', not robbing the blind."

Tachibana Kippei looked amused as he coughed into his hand. "Yes, exactly. Tezuka isn't one to take advantage of young girls, Atobe."

Atobe mulled this over, refusing to be wrong. "Ore-sama understands now." His perfect head nodded in acceptance. "You're just waiting for her to grow up before you court her properly, is that right, Tezuka?" His piercing look made Sakuno hide behind Tomoka and Ann for protection. "You're a real sly one, Tezuka. Ore-sama can see where you're going with this." He nodded sagely, as if he finally figured everything out. "Ore-sama couldn't believe Ore-sama didn't realize it sooner!"

Tezuka was almost afraid to ask. "And what would that be, Atobe?"

The pompousness level in the air was suffocating. "You found yourself a delicate little flower, one that you know for sure would bloom into a beautiful rose, given enough time. So you decided to reserve it for yourself. Ore-sama knows your true motives now; Ore-sama couldn't believe he missed it before!" Heads cocked to the side as they tried to process what he was saying. "As expected from Ore-sama's rival!" Atobe gave his rival an appraising look. "You always exceed Ore-sama's expectations, Tezuka!" Tezuka met the admiration with a blank look, mirrored on everyone else's faces.

"Maybe the Monkey King was dropped on his head when he was a child." Ryoma's voice broke the silence after several moments of silence.

"You know, it's been fun and all but we have to go now," Ann said as she grabbed Sakuno's arm, she was really looking forward to making that bear for Sakuno. Maybe she can put one up the banshee this time. The image of Sakuno preferring her bear over Osakada's sent a feral grin to Ann's face. "Momo, it was really fun but I have to go on my date with Sakuno now." She smiled at how he blushed, he was so easy to tease. "I had fun so maybe we could do this again next time."

"Ann-chan!" Kamio protested, face flushing in anger directed at Momo, "stop saying things like that! People would think it was true!"

Atobe was curious. "Where is your girlfriend going, Tezuka?"

Ryoma decided he's had enough. He didn't really appreciate the baka saru not getting it into his thick skull that Ryuzaki wasn't the buchou's girlfriend. Someone had to set him straight. "Monkey King-"

"We're going to the Build-A-Bear Workshop," Sakuno answered shyly, interrupting Ryoma.

"Aaaaah!" Kikumaru suddenly squealed. "Do you mean that new store that lets you make your own bear and everything?" Eager eyes sparkled with innocent joy.

"I believe it opened just recently." Inui consulted his notes.

Momo gaped at him. "You mean you even have _that_ on your data?"

His glasses gleamed almost evilly as he grinned. "I overheard Ryuzaki-chan and Osakada talking about it in school." Sakuno involuntarily shuddered at the mental image of how Inui-senpai 'overheard' that conversation, and wondered what else he's been 'overhearing' from them.

"Ryoma-sama," Tomoka thought of a great idea that would make Sakuno happy and prove that she was a better friend than Ann, "you want to come with us?"

Ryoma shrugged indifferently. He wasn't going to go build some sissy bear with some girls.

"I wanna go!" Kikumaru squealed again, clasping his hands together. "Can I, can I? Can I come, ne? Can I, please!" He bounced in excitement.

"I think it would be fun to go," Akaya looked at Sakuno as he said it, making the girl blush. Ryoma's cat eyes narrowed. Kikumaru jumped up and down as he discussed what bear he was going to make with Oishi.

"I agree," Fuji looked at his friend. "Doesn't that sound fun to you, Tezuka?"

"Is that a challenge?" Atobe declared just as Sakuno smiled at Akaya and timidly said "Akaya-kun could come if he likes." The wide smile that the Rikkai Dai student wasn't missed by anyone, much less by the great Atobe. "So it IS a challenge! Tezuka Ore-sama believes you have a different rival this time, wouldn't you agree, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"What the heck are you talking about, Monkey King?" Ryoma wasn't the only one confused by the Hyotei captain's statement. It seemed that Kabaji was the only one who understood him, maybe. Even Fuji and Tezuka looked puzzled, despite their unreadable masks. Inui looked up from taking notes; Kikumaru stopped bouncing, causing Oishi to get a relief from his headache; it also earned him curious looks from Kippei and Kamio as well as the three girls, and Kirihara blinked at him owlishly, trying to figure out what went on inside that supposedly brilliant mind of his.

"Ore-sama believes that this person –" Atobe waved a dismissive hand at Tezuka's rival's direction.

"Kirihara Akaya," Akaya barked out, somewhat at a loss as to how to deal with Atobe's massive ego and disregard for anyone else who wasn't Tezuka.

"Yes," Atobe continued, "Ore-sama believes that he just challenged you to this Building-a-Bear contest, Tezuka. One that would win the heart of the fair maiden of course. Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu!"

Sakuno, Ann and Tomoka were doing great impressions of Oishi's fish at the moment.

"I'm sorry…" Ann shook her head, trying to process what the King of Pompous Town just said "… what?"

Her brother was fairing just the same. "How did you figure that out from the boy's response?" He wondered out loud.

_One thing capable of keeping Kamio and Momo from fighting each other is Atobe and his skills at confusing people with his massive ego._ Inui happily scribbled on his notebook, feeling like a child in a candy store. _Echizen seems really bothered by the fact that Atobe likes to call Ryuzaki-chan Tezuka's girlfriend._ Beside it he drew a box and wrote _A new rival for Echizen is more probable in Kirihara Akaya than Tezuka – 76 percent._ Turning a page, he continued. _Kikumaru seems to enjoy bears as much as the Ryuzaki-chan, Osakada and Tachibana do._

"Alright, it's been decided!" Kikumaru chirped, happily pumping a fist into the air. "So we're all going?" The only person who didn't look dazed was Atobe. "We're all going to build the best bear ever, with the names of our schools at stake, is that it?" He looped an arm around Echizen's neck and dragged him along with him, leading the way. "Let's go, Ochibi-chan!"

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤

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**kochi** – this way

**baka** – stupid

**saru** - monkey

**P.S.**

I don't own the lyrics to Ann's cellphone's ringtone. Gwen Stefani does.

And I don't own Build A Bear Workshop as well.

Reviews will be greatly appreciated.


	5. My bear is better than yours

**Disclaimer: **I don't own PoT, onomatopoeic words like "poke" or the Build-A-Bear Workshop. Also, no bunnies were killed while making any of the chapters, as well as no people were killed by the killer bunnies. O.o

Thanks for your reviews last chapter. 8D

♥ L I M A ♥

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_Poke._

_Poke._

_Poke. Poke. Poke._

"Do you** really** have to do that?" Oishi's voice was resigned, he sounded old and tired.

_Poke. Poke. _"You have to make sure that you get the softest and best ones, Oishi!" _Poke. Poke. Poke._ "I want my new bear to be really soft and cuddly!" Kikumaru was feeling euphoric at the amount of material available in the store. The possibilities were endless and he couldn't even begin to imagine all the things he could do!

"Hmmmm…" Momo observed as he too poked at the materials they were allowed to use. _Poke. POKE._

"You know, Momo-senpai," Ryoma couldn't help but notice, "When _you _do it, it's almost kind of creepy." The sight of a tall boy poking fluffy cotton-like things in the midst of girly stuff looked totally weird.

"But Eiji-senpai is doing it!" Momo pointed at Kikumaru who wasn't only poking, but squeezing and even nuzzling the stuffing to his face at times.

"Yes but that's _Eiji-senpai_ we're talking about." That statement made perfect sense to the both of them, and Momo promptly decided to stop his poking.

"Have you made your wish yet, Sakuno?" Ann picked a pink heart to insert into her bear. She saw on television that people made a secret wish while holding the heart before putting it inside their bears. She thought it was cute.

"I made mine!" Kikumaru hugged his stuffing lovingly. "I wished that-"

The girls gasped. "Kikumaru-senpai," Sakuno looked stricken, "you're not supposed to tell anyone about your wish! It makes it more special like that." Ann and Tomoka nodded solemnly.

"Ah, is that so?" Kikumaru was relieved he didn't blurt out his wish before he ruined it. He skipped away, going back to helping Oishi who was struggling with his own creation.

Akaya found himself enjoying this happy accident. He never fathomed that his ability to nap on buses would lead him to interesting things. Things like how the other tennis teams acted out of the courts, for example. _Mwahahahahaha_, an evil voice inside his head laughed. He was secure enough with his masculinity not to cringe at the sight and feel of fuzzy cuddly things, but he doubted if you could say the same thing about some of the other guys here.

"How does my bear look, Sakuno-chan?" Akaya dangled his almost-finished bear in front of Sakuno. The girls giggled at his behavior. While Kikumaru looked right at home in the Workshop – like a little girl trapped in a teenage boy's body – the other guys looked totally out of their element.

Atobe was trying hard not to choke on the cute, loudly announcing after one glance at all the fuzzies that Kabaji was going to help him make the best bear Hyotei could produce. He refused to get his hands near any of the fluffy happy-happy joy-joy things that would mar his manly image.

Fuji had no problem touching the girly stuff. He didn't look as home as Kikumaru looked, but his years of training as a live dollie with Yuuta under their older sister came in handy. One does not simply walk into onee-chan's room… there is evil there that never sleeps. Inui's special remix juices were like walks in the park on a sunny day while holding hands with friendship bunnies compared to what the eldest Fuji sibling was capable of doing.

Inui looked like he was jotting down each step of the bear-making process, taking note of which materials would go best with what. Each process was painstakingly recorded in his trusty notebook. A lot of them wondered what purpose this would serve him in the future, but left him to his own devices nonetheless. It was best not to disturb geniuses at work.

Kamio and Momo were competing with each other, sneaking a look at each other's bear every once in a while. They both looked lost on what to do next, but neither refused to back down or break down and ask for help.

Kippei, for all intents and purposes, was a man's man. His father was proud to have him as his son, and he enjoyed manly things like pulling your teeth out one by one with a pair of rusty pliers or cutting your nails too short and then scraping them across a blackboard. Those things were more enjoyable than what he was doing right now, but if Tezuka and Atobe were doing it, then he wasn't going to chicken out either.

Tezuka absolutely refused to participate or go anywhere near the fuzzy creatures. He took one look at the wall to wall stuff that sent the girls (and Kikumaru) into a rabid frenzy and almost fled. The weird language that all the female species in the room (and Kikumaru) spoke consisted entirely of words sounding like "meep", "squee" and an occasional "squeegle" made him feel totally lost and alienated. But he didn't back down, nor did he waiver. No one even had a glimmer of an idea that the great buchou of Seigaku was actually fighting off a cold shiver down his spine. Wax in, wax off. Breathe, he could do this. Sure he would rather have both of his shoulders broken rather than walk into the cute-smelling store, but if Atobe and even Tachibana could do it, then so could he. Was it even possible to die from extreme fluffiness?

Sakuno was having a great time, but she couldn't help but feel self-conscious as well. She wasn't used to the constant attention that Akaya-kun was giving her, and the warmth in her cheeks wouldn't disappear. You would normally think that someone who looked dangerous would stand out in a cutesy store like this, but compared to the others, Akaya-kun was faring actually quite well. "It looks like it's going to be a very cute bear, Akaya-kun." She replied, feeling like she's known Akaya-kun all her life instead of just a few hours.

From the time their ragtag group took on Atobe's makeshift challenge, Akaya-kun hasn't left Sakuno's side. He was right at home, chatting with Tomo-chan and Ann-chan, the two girls forgetting their dislike for each other and enjoying themselves even.

Ryoma thought that this Kirihara character from Rikkai Dai wasn't someone that any of them should trust. He kept one discreet eye on the boy as he stuffed his chosen bear. He could swear Kirihara would _sniff_ Ryuzaki once in a while, like some bizarre animal raging with hormones. If you blink, you'd miss it, but he was sure he wasn't just imagining things.

The girls were rather taken by him. Of what, Ryoma didn't know. Kirihara looked like a devious little troublemaker. Mischief lurked behind those deceiving eyes; no one should trust any girl below the age of 70 alone in a room with him.

"Put some more of those, Kabaji." Atobe pointed out specific directions from the sidelines.

"Ossu."

"And maybe some of those," the duo continued their own project. Atobe was determined to prove his superiority not only in the tennis courts.

"Nii-san, after you're done with your bear you can start picking the accessories for it." Ann sang happily as she secretly compared her bear with Tomoka's and decided that hers was way better.

"Hai," Kippei's Adam's apple bobbed up and down as he swallowed distinctly. _I hope nobody else sees my humiliation_ had become his mantra as he stared at his bear intently. _Hmmm… I think blue would match well with his fur…_ he thought before he could stop himself.

"Aaaw, that's cute, Oishi!" Kikumaru cooed as he leaned forward and examined Oishi's bear.

Oishi laughed hesitantly. Why did he feel like he lost manly points even though Eiji was complimenting him? "Thanks, Eiji." He felt like he lost a big part of his pride, for some reason.

Especially when Kikumaru added, "But my bear is still cuter nyah!" and he cuddled it to his chest lovingly. "Don't you think so, Ochibi-chan?" He peered at Echizen's work as he paraded his own in front of their youngest Seigaku Regular.

"It's a bear," Echizen answered in a deadpan voice. Surely Eiji-senpai didn't actually expect him to agree with that statement.

"Mama," a little girl tugged on the hem of her mother's skirt. "Can we come back another day?" The girl, about age four or five, shivered.

The mother picked her up, baffled at her daughter's behavior. "But you haven't even started on your bear yet, sweetie." Loving hands wiped the bangs away from her precious child's face. Her child had been looking forward to coming here and she was extremely puzzled as to why her baby didn't look as excited as she had been for several weeks now.

The little girl shivered some more, clearly she was afraid of something. "I'm scared, Mama." A chubby finger stretched forward, pointing at someone. "Let's go home and come back tomorrow when he's not here anymore." She was whimpering as she tried to burrow her way into her mother's safe bosom.

Inui was sporting a deranged grin as he scribbled into his notebook, hunched over his masterpiece. "My precious…" he would mutter once in a while, alternating between taking notes and working on his bear. The tennis data man never noticed the mothers steering their little girls away from him, cradling them protectively in their arms.

_Dear Diary,_

_Ryoma-kun has charisma, as obaa-chan said. When he walks into a room, he commands attention even if he doesn't do anything. He has that air of confidence around him that I wish I had. He's so cool! I wonder if he has a cellphone… I've never seen him with one, but Tomo-chan insists that he must have one. I'm too shy to ask him though - he has no time to exchange numbers with a girl like me, a girl whom he probably doesn't even pay much attention to. Still, it's okay for me to continue admiring him from the sidelines, ne? He has become my favorite tennis player and I'd like to think of myself as his number one fan._

Ryoma wondered where all the adoration he read and thought she felt for him had gone. If he was so 'charismatic' as she said in her entry, how come he felt like she didn't even know that he existed right now? If she smiled sweetly at Kirihara one more time, he was going to puke.

"You know, Tezuka," Fuji thought it prudent to give his friend some advice "your bear won't build itself just by you glaring at it."

Tezuka decided to ignore the amusement he detected in Fuji's tone. "I was just contemplating the best way to start."

"Well, stop glaring at it!" Kikumaru clucked his tongue disapprovingly. "You'll hurt its feelings nyah!"

_Note to self: Make sure Eiji gets an extra ten laps at practice on Monday_. "Thank you Fuji, Eiji." He finally gathered enough guts to touch the fluff. _No amount of therapy would ever make this okay…_ He couldn't decide whose fault this was – Atobe's or Eiji's. He felt like he lost at least a thousand manly points on contact with the fuzzies. _Saa… let's build a bear without any regrets…_

"That's really cute, Tomo-chan." Sakuno remarked. Ann, not to be outdone, pushed her incomplete bear towards Sakuno subtly. "I can't believe you're almost done with yours, Ann-chan!" Sakuno didn't fail to compliment her friend. The bear was a clear reflection on Ann-chan's personality – cute with an attitude. "I wonder what accessories I should give mine."

"Do they have tennis gears?" Akaya looked around. A store worker heard his question and pointed him in the right direction. "Wow, this place has everything!" He never knew so much work or thought was required to make a single bear.

"That's because bears are special, Akaya-kun." Sakuno smiled shyly at him, feeling brave enough to give him some trivia. "Do you know that when you give someone a teddy bear that you made all by yourself, it's said that you'll be connected to that person forever?" Even Inui paused from his extreme bear-making to listen to Sakuno's words. "And even more special if the one receiving the bear names it after the person who gave it to them." A thoughtful look passed on her face, remembering her first intentions about the bear that she was going to make today.

She originally planned to give it to Ryoma-kun, but she hadn't foreseen that he would come with them while she made it. Also, her original plan was to give it to him together with some Valentine's Day chocolates, but ended up handing out chocolates to all the Regulars and no bear instead last month. She was still giving him the bear, despite Valentine's Day having finished already, maybe on his birthday or for next year's Valentine's Day, but that was before he came with them to build it. If she gave it to him after this, everybody would know and she didn't think she'd be able to survive the embarrassment.

It was bad enough that everybody probably assumed she had a huge crush on Ryoma-kun (however true that may be), there was no sense in waving it like a bright red flag and parading it in front of everybody else.

If she had little courage to give him the bear before, she certainly had no courage to give him the bear after this. The bear would have to go to someone else, maybe Ann-chan or Tomo-chan, or Shinji-kun as a thank you gift for all the tennis lessons he's been giving her… or maybe she should just keep it for herself, but not Ryoma-kun. Not anymore.

Pity, that. But what he didn't know won't hurt him, so it was okay. It wasn't like he would appreciate receiving a bear from her, right? She didn't even know if he ate her Valentine's chocolates…

"Thanks for the good data, Ryuzaki." Inui resumed his extreme bear project.

"So who are you going to give your bear to, Sakuno-chan?" Fuji asked, curious.

Sakuno got red in the face, not really wanting to answer Fuji-nii's question. "Um… well…" she stuttered, "I don't really have…"

"She's going to give it to Tezuka, of course, Fuji!" Atobe loudly answered in behalf of his rival in tennis. He heard everything and wondered why Fuji was called a genius if he couldn't even figure out such simple things. "It's only natural."

Fuji smiled at the dark cloud hanging over Echizen. "Of course, Atobe. How silly of me to think that she would give it to anybody else in the first place." He humored the guy. He could always get the details from Sakuno-chan in private. It was more fun to keep a secret than have everybody else in on it anyway.

Akaya was slightly bothered. Sakuno-chan was young, her senpai-tachi were right, she looked like a baby still. He admitted to himself that he was interested in her and wanted to know her better. That also didn't mean that they couldn't become friends right now. However, if she was already involved with Tezuka… "Sakuno-chan," he whispered low as the others continued with their tasks and didn't seem to pay them any attention.

"Yes, Akaya-kun?" Sakuno whispered back, perplexed as to why they were talking in hushed tones.

"Can I ask you a question? I know we haven't known each other for a long time, and it's kind of personal, so I hope you don't get offended – you don't have to answer it if you don't want to." The words came out in a rush, all jumbled up.

Sakuno blinked at him. "You can ask me anything, Akaya-kun." He didn't seem like the rude type of person so what was he worried about?

Akaya closed the gap between them even more; he didn't want the others overhearing their conversation. "I was wondering if…" his voice was barely above a ghost of a whisper "Tezuka is really your boyfriend?"

"The buchou?" Sakuno squeaked in surprise. "He's not my boyfriend!" She whispered back in denial as her face turned into five shades of red. Anyone with a sane mind would find the buchou very appealing, but as far as she knew, he didn't even see her as anything but a kid whom he babysat once in a while. He was certainly a great guy – handsome, intelligent, mature and caring – any girl would be lucky to be his girlfriend, but she saw him more like an older brother rather than boyfriend material…

Akaya looked both relieved and embarrassed. "I just thought that you know, since Atobe said it…"

"But Atobe-san doesn't seem to listen to anybody but himself…" Sakuno couldn't help but mumble and then promptly felt bad for saying it, turning seven shades of red this time as she placed a hand on top of her mouth, causing Akaya to bark out a laugh that got the others' attention.

"Tezuka, Ore-sama believes that someone is trying to sneak one past you."

"I believe you're right," Akaya murmured in Sakuno's ear, causing her to redden even more. He was glad he cleared it up with her.

"Excuse me," Ryoma appeared out of thin air and wedged his way in between Akaya and Sakuno. "I think I need this material right here."

Akaya's brows furrowed thoughtfully as he got pushed to the side. "You mean this?" He said, picking it up and handing it over to the boy.

Ryoma didn't even bat an eye as he accepted the pink lace… thing. _How the heck am I supposed to use this on a girly bear?_ Since Kirihara was looking at him expectantly, he didn't even blink and continued to pretend like he knew what in the world he was doing. _Damn stupid bear._ He glared at the offending thing, following buchou's example.

"Um, Ryoma-kun?"

"Yes?" His voice was gruff and grumpy. _Where the heck am I supposed to put the damn frilly lace?_

Sakuno flinched from his tone. Ryoma-kun wasn't the type to _like_ doing these kinds of things, unlike Kikumaru-senpai, so she could understand his frustration. She figured he was probably asking for help in his own way when he came over, his struggle with the cuddly thing frustrating him. "Would you like some help with that?"

"Yes, Ryoma-_kun_," Why did he feel like Kirihara's use of his name plus the honorific was some kind of insult? "You should let Sakuno-chan help you. She's very good at this." Ryoma wasn't fooled by that false smile either.

"Thank you, Ryuzaki." Yes, Sakuno was rather good at lots of girly stuff, even if she couldn't play a decent game of tennis. She made a few nips and tucks that helped improve the bear's condition greatly, relieving him of having to glare at it into submission.

"Sakuno is also a great cook." Ann said as she joined them, smiling deviously inside her head. "Did you know that, Kirihara-kun?"

"I didn't." Akaya replied, filing the information away for future use.

"But you don't have to take my word for it," the girl from Fudomine had matchmaking on the brain. "Maybe Sakuno could cook for you someday and you can judge for yourself, ne?"

"Ann-chan…" Sakuno couldn't figure out what relevance her non-existent cooking skills were to their current task. Just because her food was edible compared to her friend's didn't make her the good cook that Ann-chan liked to brag about. She didn't want people to have great expectations of her only to be disappointed in the end.

"Someday, definitely." Akaya agreed.

"Ryoma-sama has already tasted Sakuno's cooking." Tomoka elbowed her way into the conversation. She was suspicious at Ann's behavior. Was she trying to play cupid between Sakuno and another guy who wasn't Ryoma-sama? Ryoma remained silent, finishing his project. "Isn't that right, Ryoma-sama?"

Ryoma could vaguely remember accepting a bento from Ryuzaki once… and the mere smell of her lunches always made his mouth water, even if she hadn't made any other bento for him except for that one time… "Uh… sure." He answered, lacking anything else to say.

"Ah, I'm done!" Oishi breathed a sigh of relief.

"Me too!" Kikumaru whooped in excitement.

∞∞∞∞∞

One by one they finished their projects and left the store after paying for their purchases. Several feet reluctantly dragged as they found a spot to compare their creations in private. There was no definite judge (despite Atobe's self-proclamation), so they were going to have to collectively agree on the winner.

The girls, predictably, had delightfully pretty bears. Tomoka's was a bit excessively ornamented, Kirihara joking about how it reminded him of someone while he looked at Atobe, while Ann's was simple yet charming. Kikumaru couldn't help but huggle Sakuno's creation, christening it "baby bear" and teasing his Ochibi about how he should watch out because it was cuter than him.

Then came Oishi's which was, surprisingly, very well done. Kikumaru insisted that his was still cuter, earning him a pat on the head from his doubles partner.

Fuji didn't have an ounce of hesitation as he presented his masterpiece, impressing his peers with it. He graciously accepted the oohs and aahs from the girls, taking the ribbing from the boys in stride.

"If I didn't know any better, I would say you've had practice." Inui observed. Fuji merely smiled that serene smile of his and asked the next person to present their teddy bear.

Both Momo's and Kamio's bears looked a bit roughed up, almost identical to each other except for the color of their fur. This started an argument between them, Kamio accusing Momo of imitating him and Momo scoffing at the statement. Kippei diffused it by holding up his creation, which looked a little glum for a teddy bear.

"If you put a dot on the middle of its forehead, it'd almost look like you, nii-chan!"

Kippei chose to ignore that remark, for he was secretly happy about how his bear turned out. It didn't look anything remotely sissy-ish, and he was able to salvage what pride he had left after this horrible experience.

Tezuka pinned a look towards Echizen that silently told him to get his bear out _or else_. The unwilling boy forked over his pouting honey-colored creation for inspection.

"I didn't know bears could pout," Kirihara remarked as he compared his bear with Echizen's. A few of them even wondered out loud why Echizen's bear was sporting some pink lace.

"Mada mada dane," Ryoma glared at them.

"And here is mine," Tezuka placed his bear out of the bag for closer scrutiny. Everybody went silent. Even Kikumaru didn't have any cute comebacks.

"Um…" Even Oishi didn't know what to say. He didn't want to vocalize his thoughts about how he felt a bit intimidated by the stuffed toy. It looked very authoritative, much like the person who made it. All it needed were some glasses and they could call it Tezuka Junior.

"It's very nice, buchou." Sakuno and Tezuka shared a smile.

"Yes, very nice." Atobe eyed it carefully, not disagreeing with Tezuka's girlfriend since she was too busy making googly eyes at Tezuka. "Kabaji, show them what Ore-sama made."

"Ossu." Kabaji obediently did what he was told to do.

"Oh my God!" Eiji pointed horrifically, looking totally petrified at the sight. His eyes were starting to water with unshed tears, his gut telling him that this injustice will not be forgotten. "You killed the teddy bear!"

Kabaji, under directions from Atobe, managed to put as much stuffing inside the bear as possible; it looked like a soft jab on its tummy would send its innards right side out. The eyes that were supposed to look sparkly and cute were threatening to pop out of their sockets, the seams were visible. Clearly, neither The Great Atobe nor Kabaji had any inkling of how a normal teddy bear looked like.

"Harsh words to be throwing at Ore-sama's face, Kikumaru." Atobe complained. He was surprised at the end result himself, but he didn't _kill_ anything. The bear didn't look like the one he had pictured in his mind, thanks to Kabaji. It wasn't his fault that the bear looked dangerously close to bursting. His instructions had been perfect, it wasn't his fault that Kabaji couldn't take directions well this time. "Let's see how _your_ bear turned up." He challenged.

"Here you go nyah!" Kikumaru's bear was very cute. Oishi thought it looked like a miniature of the one Eiji had at home, the one that kept falling to its left side when left unattended. The girls praised it, giving him props for attaching a piece of cloth on the left side of its face, resembling a Band-Aid. The boys merely grunted at it, refusing to use the word 'cute' to aptly describe it. It even had a little red bow tied around its neck, like a pretty package.

"I think Kikumaru-senpai shouldn't be participating in this contest." Momo might not have been too enthusiastic about this project, but Kikumaru-senpai's experience in this field was a definite disadvantage for them.

"What!" Kikumaru protested. "Momo-chin, you're so cruel! Why are you trying to leave me out of this nyah?" Not counting Ryuzaki-chan's bear, his was a definite shoo in for the cutest and therefore a guaranteed win for him. "This was my idea!"

"Ore-sama would like to disagree and remind Kikumaru that this was Tezuka's rival's idea."

"Kirihara Akaya – my name is Kirihara Akaya."

"Rival for what, Monkey King?"

"Kikumaru-senpai you have an unfair advantage over the rest of us."

"Nyah, you're just making excuses because your bear doesn't measure up, Momo!"

Chaos ensued as Kikumaru and his finger got up close to Momo's face, insisting that he be included in the competition while Kamio insulted Momo's bear. Akaya was also lecturing Atobe about his proper name, with Ryoma muttering "Ryuzaki is not the buchou's girlfriend" in between Akaya's lectures. Atobe failed to take notice of the two boys, deeming them beneath him as he tried to come to terms with the fact that Tezuka's bear looked better than his.

Kippei so didn't need this right now; he was getting a headache from all the _boys_ running around arguing about _teddy bears_ for the love of everything that was manly. Whatever happened to the pride of being a guy? "Why don't we let the girls be the judges so we can all go home afterwards?"

"But that would be unfair." Atobe wondered why they turned to him curiously. "Tezuka's girlfriend will surely vote for Tezuka." He explained, speaking slowly for the benefit of those who seemed to have difficulty understanding his perfect logic.

Ryoma slapped a hand against his forehead. "For the love of…"

"Anou… I'm sure Ann-chan and Tomo-chan would make fair judgments." Sakuno didn't want to be seen as unfair to anyone. Eyes narrowing slightly at each other before the rest of them agreed.

"Yosh!" Tomoka was psyched. "Then I think that Ryoma-sama made the best bear and –"

"Na uh!" Ann disagreed, cutting her off. "Kirihara-kun's bear is cuter than Echizen-kun's. No offense, Echizen-kun."

Ryoma thought that Ann was showing favoritism, but didn't comment.

Akaya was pleased that Sakuno-chan's friend seemed to like him. "You really think so, Ann-san?" Having one of Sakuno-chan's friend like his bear was like getting a foot through the door.

"No," Tomoka insisted "Ryoma-sama's bear is better and I declare it the winner."

Ann tried not to growl at the girl. "But I'm also a judge and I say that Kirihara-kun's is better." Hands clenched into fists and tempers showed.

"Ryoma-sama's bear is the winner."

"No, Kirihara-kun's bear is. You can clearly see that it's better."

"What I can clearly see is Ryoma-sama's skill being on a higher level and his bear is more fitted to win."

"But his bear doesn't care about winning, it doesn't care about anything but tennis. It had its turn and now it's time for someone else."

Tomoka refused to back down. "Ryoma-sama's bear isn't cruel nor is it obsessed with winning. You haven't even given it enough time yet. Just wait for it and you'll see its value."

Ann took the bait. "Are you saying that Kirihara-kun's bear is cruel? It's not, it's just very competitive."

"It's not very respectful!"

"It is! You just haven't given it a chance yet! You don't even know it so how could you say that!"

"How can you tell all that just by looking at the bears nyah?" Kikumaru was confused. He didn't know that the bears could talk or had tennis skills… Wait, were they still talking about the teddy bears or about something else?

"Maa…" Oishi could see the signs of an inevitable endless battle between the two girls – he recognized them from experience with dealing with Momo and Kaidoh. "Then why don't we get a tie-breaker, ne? I'm sure Atobe wouldn't mind it if we ask Ryuzaki-chan whose bear she likes best."

Sakuno turned red at the attention she got as all eyes turned to her, her feet shuffled as she tried to put her opinions into words. "Um… anou… Akaya-kun's bear is cute." Akaya and Ann grinned triumphantly while Ryoma's frown deepened. "But so is Ryoma-kun's."

"Ha!" Tomoka shot a winning smile towards Ann.

"And Fuji-nii's as well, I really liked that." Sakuno continued, dashing the hope that flared inside Ryoma's chest. "And Oishi-senpai's was really pretty." Oishi winced from the word. "I really liked Kikumaru-senpai's ribbon."

"Hehe, did you hear that, Momo-chin?"

"And I'm sure that Atobe-san's bear can be fixed. If we remove some of the stuffing, I'm sure that we'll see how cute it really is. Momo-senpai's, Kippei no nii-chan's and Kamio-kun's bears were really well-made as well," she couldn't decide and didn't want to play favorites or hurt anybody's feelings by favoring one creation for another. All of them were very pretty in their own rights. "So um… anou…" She wrung her hands together, trying to figure out how to word it so that everybody would be winners.

"But of course you think that Tezuka's is the nicest, don't you?" Atobe nodded in understanding. He was pleased to know that Tezuka's girlfriend had a kind and loyal heart. It was so hard to find people like that nowadays. He was humbled that she would defend that monstrosity Kabaji dared to call a bear. His view of Tezuka's girlfriend raised a notch higher, his respect for Tezuka along with it.

"I don't think that's what Sakuno-chan meant…" Fuji tried to reason with him.

"So you win this time, Tezuka. Ore-sama will learn from this loss and make sure to build a better one next time. Right, Kabaji?"

"Ossu!"

Tezuka didn't bother to tell Atobe that there would never be a next time. Once was enough for him. He remained quiet with a lack of anything polite to say.

"So we all agree that my bear is the winner, nyah?"

"Aaah Kikumaru-senpai, you're not allowed to enter in the competition!" Momo grumbled.

"Break it up, you two." Oishi pleaded as Kikumaru grabbed Momo and placed him on a headlock. There was no point in two boys fighting over whose bear was cuter.

Kirihara watched as the Seigaku Regulars argued between themselves. Kamio was even egging Kikumaru on, giving him tips on how to make it more painful. It was very entertaining. Ann was used to the Seigaku Regulars' antics, so she paid it no mind as she stood next to him.

"White Day is coming up."

Akaya nodded.

"A teddy bear would make for a nice gift this White Day." She continued to say nonchalantly.

Akaya looked at the girl, wondering what she was suggesting. Ann merely smiled at him, if he was wise enough he'll figure out what she meant by her statement.

"Wait." Tezuka's voice stopped Kikumaru from giving Momo a noogie. He just remembered something. "We haven't seen Inui's bear yet." And he was right. They were all too distracted by all the petty arguing and judging that they didn't realize Inui hasn't shown them his bear yet.

Inui gathered quite a bit of great data, not only on bears, but on how his fellow Regulars handled them as well. He was very pleased. His glasses gleamed as he paused dramatically before pulling out his masterpiece from his bag. "Inui Bear version one."

∞∞∞∞∞

In the end, Inui won the contest with his superior teddy bear-making skills. He wasn't taking notes just to freak out the regular customers from the store; he was actually gathering good data. Data that proved useful, if the end product was any indication. Inui was pleased with his win. There was no material prize, but he was happy to have succeeded to be the best among everybody else today.

Since it was nearing most of their curfews, the group dispersed into smaller pairs.

The girls originally planned to do a bit of shopping after but since Sakuno was late, they had to postpone it. Ann went home with her brother and Kamio, but not before giving Akaya pointed looks and motioning with her fingers towards Sakuno, imitating a phone near her ear and mouth.

Atobe wouldn't be caught dead riding public transportation, so he and Kabaji bid their farewell after Sakuno fixed Atobe's mangled teddy bear. He offered Tezuka and 'Tezuka's girlfriend' rides, but the two politely refused, insisting on taking the bus and train with their friends instead.

Inui, Momo and Tomoka were going on the same direction so they decided to go together, while Oishi went with Kikumaru. This left Tezuka with Sakuno, Fuji and Ryoma. Akaya was the only one among them to go on his direction, so he was going home alone.

"Bye!" Kikumaru waved as he disappeared with Oishi in the crowd.

"Bye-bye!" Tomoka enthusiastically returned before she too took her leave with Inui and Momo, but not before doing what Ann did and signaled for Sakuno to call her later that night as well.

"Are you sure you don't want me to see you home, Sakuno-chan?" Akaya politely inquired. He didn't want her to get lost on her way home or have some strange guy sleep on her lap or something like that again...

"I'm going with my senpai-tachi and I know my way home, Akaya-kun." Sakuno wanted to put a paper bag over her head. Did everybody think that she got lost **all** the time? Her sense of direction wasn't stellar, but she has never gotten lost getting home before… in the past six months or so at least.

"We'll make sure she gets home safe," Fuji assured the boy. He was surprised that he seemed to care so much. He originally thought that the boy had a bit of a mean streak in him, judging from how he played tennis. He guessed he was wrong, but then that was a good thing. He didn't want any mean people around his kouhai.

"That's good then." Akaya didn't want to ask her for her phone number in front of her senpais. All of whom seemed unpredictable. Who knew how they would react or what they would think if he did? "Um…" How could he prolong this moment and buy him more time?

"It was nice meeting you," Fuji bowed slightly and took Sakuno's package off of her hands, intent on carrying it for her. "I guess we'll be going now then."

Tezuka also inclined his head slightly towards Akaya and then took his leave. Ryoma tipped his hat in relief, glad that they were finally getting rid of the guy.

"Bye, Akaya-kun! It was really nice meeting you like this." Sakuno would have bowed low if not for Syusuke-nii's hand on her shoulder.

Akaya mentally kicked himself in the butt as he watched Sakuno and her friends disappear in the crowd. He never got a chance to ask her for her number! There were always too many people butting into their conversation and there was never a good time to do so with Atobe and his ego around.

Coming full circle, he sat down at the edge of the fountain as he twirled his cellphone lazily on his hand. It was a habit he developed, using his middle finger and thumb. He often did it when he was deep in thought.

If he went to Seigaku, it would look like he was trying too hard. First of all, he didn't want to get accused of spying again, even if he wasn't spying the first time. Second of all, he didn't want to arouse any suspicions, especially with the Seigaku Regulars who acted like Sakuno-chan's older brothers who would probably happily pound him into the ground if they suspected him of anything fresh. Third of all, he didn't know what he was going to do now. Aside from tennis, he didn't really give any thought about anything else, much less about girls. They didn't teach this stuff at school. He switched from twirling his phone between his fingers to flipping it open and closed, thinking about what he should do next.

And then it hit him.

Sakuno-chan had used _his_ phone to call her friend. Adrenaline rushed through his body as he applauded his genius. Hitting the right keys to get to the Call Log feature, he accessed the last number dialed.

_Bingo!_

There it was.

Sakuno-chan's friend's number. He silently prayed it was Tachibana's little sister she called instead of that other girl who didn't seem to like him as much as he dialed to call.

∞∞∞∞∞

"That Kirihara guy doesn't seem too bad of a person once you get to know him out of the courts, does he?" Fuji was sitting next to Ryoma with Sakuno sitting between Fuji and Tezuka on the other side of the bus. Tezuka was going to have to take a different train from them after that, but he need not worry because Fuji and Echizen were going to be able to walk Sakuno home.

"Aa," Tezuka answered. Ryoma remained silent while Sakuno nodded in agreement at her nii's words.

"Sakuno-chan seems to like him." Fuji smiled as Sakuno turned red. "Do you like him, Sakuno-chan?" Fuji's smile widened as he felt the boy sitting beside him stiffen.

"Akaya-kun was very nice to me, Syusuke-nii." Sakuno answered. "And he sort of reminds me of you."

Thoughts of taunting Echizen flew out of the window. "How come?" Even Tezuka was curious as to how Sakuno could make the comparison.

"W-well… you both look kind of intimidating on the outside," Sakuno lowered her head in semi-embarrassment, despite knowing that Syusuke-nii wouldn't take that the wrong way. "I just um… well you know… some people might be comfortable with you immediately, and then some people might find you intimidating at first, but then you always manage to smile despite whatever situation you're in, so that might be the reason." She glanced at Fuji-nii. "I haven't known Akaya-kun that long yet, so I could be wrong, but I just got that impression of him. Once you get past the intimidating exterior, you find a real person inside.

Sometimes people have preconceived notions of someone from hearsay or first impressions, but once you get over those things and get a glimpse of their true personality, you'd be surprised to find a completely different person." She knew she was babbling again, but being around Ryoma-kun did that to her. The only thing she was thankful for was the fact that Fuji-nii was sitting in between them. Being near Ryoma-kun frazzled her nerves, that's why she sort of made it a point not to physically get near him too much. Delicate brows furrowed as she looked at her senpai. "Did that make sense?"

"Sakuno-chan is very astute." Fuji observed, nodding.

Since the conversation was between Fuji-senpai and Ryuzaki, Ryoma didn't bother to respond. The feeling of that fist punching him in the gut was nothing to be concerned about. He wasn't concerned about what they were discussing or who they were talking about because it had nothing to do with him.

Tezuka had other notions of course. "So you think that Kirihara is a good person?" He asked.

"Hai!" Sakuno chirped, happy that she made a new friend today. She wondered if she would ever meet with Akaya-kun again someday.

"We'd see him in the tournaments again, since he's a great tennis player." It was as if Fuji-nii had read her mind.

_He's not **that** great._

"What was that, Echizen?" Fuji turned to his kouhai. "Did you say something?"

Ryoma maintained his impassive face as he stared Fuji-senpai in the eye. _Did I say that out loud?_ "I didn't say anything, Fuji-senpai."

"Too bad he goes to Rikkai Dai, eh?" Fuji couldn't help but tease.

Sakuno looked a bit sad at that. "Yeah… I wonder if we'll ever get to see him again, not counting the tournaments…"

∞∞∞∞∞

Fuji Yuuta yawned as he did his morning stretches. He didn't go home that weekend, opting to stay in the dorms instead, to get some much needed rest. His dormitory at St. Rudolph's wasn't _that_ far from home that he couldn't go home during the weekends to rest, but he didn't want to deal with his aniki's mind games that weekend.

It wasn't like he hated his big brother, because he didn't. After having his ass handed to him on a platter by Echizen Ryoma, his resentment toward being labeled as 'Fuji Syusuke's little brother' diminished. Sure he still got riled up with the term once in a while, who wouldn't, but he didn't confuse mild irritation with burning hatred anymore. He didn't hate his aniki, even if his aniki seemed to enjoy playing mind games with him. It was just the way his aniki was.

This weekend was a good weekend to spend in the dorms; most of the other members went home, including Mizuki-senpai. He liked the guy, but he could be a slave-driver sometimes. Weekends were supposed to be spent relaxing and resting, not putting your team through more rigorous training than ever.

It was sort of nice to have time to slack off once in a while, even just for the weekend. Monday signaled the beginning of another week or rigorous training, so here he was now stretching.

The other members of the St. Rudolph's tennis club trickled in for early morning practice, Mizuki going right up to Yuuta as soon he spotted him.

"Ohayou, Yuuta-kun."

"Ohayou, Mizuki-senpai!"

"Did you have a great weekend?"

Yuuta smiled, remembering his weekend which was spent mostly sleeping and eating. "Yes I did, how about you?"

"I had a very interesting weekend," Mizuki replied as he began unpacking his gear on the nearby bench. "I went to the mall and found something quite fascinating."

"Really?" Yuuta politely inquired.

"Yes," Mizuki remained seated on the bench as Yuuta approached and picked up a towel to wipe his sweat off. "I saw your brother, by the way."

"Really?" Yuuta echoed once again. It wasn't abnormal to spot his aniki at the mall. He loved shopping there probably as much as their onee-chan did.

"He was in the Build-A-Bear-Workshop." Yuuta's hands stilled from wiping his brow. "And he was with some of the Seigaku Regulars." Mizuki twirled a patch of hair around his fingers, relishing in the curiosity on Yuuta's face.

"What were the Seigaku Regulars doing in the Workshop?" Even if Fuji Syusuke in the mall wasn't odd, Fuji Syusuke in the Build-A-Bear-Workshop was something different.

"I was wondering the same thing, so I observed." Mizuki had a twinkle in his eye. "Did I mention that Atobe, Tachibana and even Kirihara were there, too?"

Yuuta blinked at the familiarity of the names. Atobe and Tachibana he recognized immediately but Kirihara was… "You mean that ace from Rikkai Dai?"

"Yes."

"I didn't know… wait, were they **together**?" Mizuki nodded. "In the **Build-A-Bear-Workshop**?" Mizuki nodded again. "What were they doing there?" Now Yuuta was brimming with curiosity.

"Building a bear of course," Mizuki answered, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Of course," Yuuta felt like an echo.

"Did I mention that Tezuka was also there?"

"Tezuka was there?" Now Yuuta definitely felt like an echo.

"Well he was, as well as Atobe's sidekick… there was a girl with long pigtails as well, too."

"Sakuno-chan." Yuuta said, recognizing who it was automatically. There could only be one girl with long pigtails with his aniki.

"You know her?"

"Yeah," Yuuta nodded surely. "Aniki tutors her and either she comes over or aniki goes to her house twice a week. It's part of the Big Brother program aniki has."

Mizuki didn't know that about his rival Fuji. "I see."

"So they were building bears?" Yuuta wanted to go back to the topic at hand. He was curious as to why Atobe, Tachibana and Kirihara were there. It was normal for Sakuno-chan to be with his aniki and even bears, but what about the others?

"That guy Echizen Ryoma was there, too." Mizuki handed Yuuta's water to him; his kouhai looked like he needed a drink.

Yuuta accepted the water bottle, waving his senpai's last statement away. "Yes, but why were the others there?"

Mizuki shrugged. He never bothered to get close enough or even reveal that he was there. He didn't want Fuji Syusuke to think that he had been stalking him. "I don't know why but I do know all of them built bears. It looked as if they were having a contest or something." Yuuta took a drink from his water bottle. "And I do know that the girl with the braids is Tezuka's girlfriend."

Yuuta's eyes bugged out in surprise as he spit the water on Mizuki's face. "Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!"

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**P.S.**

I ripped off lines/ideas from Card Captor Sakura, Lord of the Rings, Fairly Odd Parents, the dictionary as usual and Karate Kid for this chapter... I think that's about it, but let me credit the whole world just in case I forgot anybody. "Baka saru" from last chapter was ripped off from my aniki who likes to call my Jye-sama that.

If you're feeling generous, please feed my starving muse by reviewing. 8P

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	6. White Day 101

**Disclaimer for every chapter: **PoT and Yakitate! Japan don't belong to me. The crack for this chapter is brought to you by Naruto 101. _"I wanna see it… have you seen it? I wanna see Kakashi-sensei's face!"_ and I don't own that either, dattebayo!

♥ **A N I M** ♥

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"Ne, Echizen, have you seen it?" Horio asked as he towered over Echizen's desk.

It was one of those normal days. Birds chirped as they rested on tree tops, squirrels ate their nuts peacefully as butterflies fluttered by.

The students at Seishun Gakuen obediently piled into their classrooms as the bell rang and everything was all right in the world of the Prince of Tennis. Even his alarm clock was kind to him that morning, he wasn't late for school. He also had a big, Japanese breakfast instead of the usual bacon and eggs, and all of his homework for today was complete.

A perfect start to a perfect day, right?

Ryoma yawned from his comfortable spot on his chair; it was too early for twenty questions. "Seen what?"

Horio placed his hands on top of Echizen's desk and leaned forward, a look of pure evil on his face. "Ryuzaki's hair down." Ryoma's eyes almost crossed as Horio went right up to his face, in an effort to create a more dramatic atmosphere. "Well have you?" The boy with two whole years of tennis experience grinned even more evilly.

"Um," Ryoma blinked, putting some distance between him and Horio's cooties as he pushed his chair backwards. "No."

"Well do you want to?" Two little bumps serving as horns were almost visible on his forehead.

"I don't care either way, Horio." Ryoma sounded very disinterested.

"You mean to say that you're not even a little bit curious as to how Ryuzaki looks like with her hair down?" Katsuo asked eyes wide as he tried to imagine what it would look like. Will her hair be wavy because she kept it in braids all the time? Or will her hair be straight? Was it naturally wavy or was it straight?

Even Kachiro was curious about it. "Don't you ever wonder if it's soft as it looks?" He swallowed audibly at the heated look that Echizen gave him. "Not that I want to touch it or do anything perverted or anything like that or – or – or anything like that at all! I wasn't thinking that, Ryoma-kun, I was just wondering!" His eyes were wide as he finished his sentence; the urge to cower under his desk was overwhelmingly strong.

"Haven't you ever wondered what it looks like, Echizen?"

"Is there an echo in here?" Ryoma was trying to downplay his curiosity. _Yes_, he wanted to tell Horio, _I **have **wondered what Ryuzaki's hair looks like without those pigtails, but I'd rather drink Inui-senpai's Hyper Remix Juice for breakfast everyday before admitting it to anyone, most of all you!_

Horio wasn't daunted by Echizen's disinterest. "Well… if you're not interested, I know several others who are." He strolled back to his seat and plopped down, the gears in his head starting to work on how he would accomplish such a feat. Katsuo and Kachiro crowded around him as they planned their course of action.

No one noticed as Ryoma's face darkened and his hands clenched into fists on his lap.

∞∞∞∞∞

If he was to blame anyone for his current predicament, he knew for certain that Horio was responsible for it. If Horio hadn't planted that thought into his brain so early in the morning today, Echizen Ryoma wouldn't have trouble concentrating in class and wouldn't have constant thoughts of honey-colored girlish braids.

Damn Horio and his big fat mouth. He should just stick to tennis. He ruined a perfectly great day with something so mundane. _Blah!_

But then… thinking of braids _was_ better than thinking about a certain diary. After more than a month of holding on to it, thinking of excuses on why he looked like he was putting off returning it to her, he could swear he was starting to grow bags under his eyes. The guilt was turning him into a girl.

He just… couldn't return it anymore. After reading it from cover to cover almost three times now, Ryuzaki seemed to have moved on from losing her diary. He even spotted her sporting a new one, another pink notebook, scribbling away her thoughts when she had some down time. Since she looked like she had moved on from the loss of her diary already, he felt like she didn't need to be reminded of her old anymore, or give her grief about having to explain why he kept it for so long.

He was never going to be able to justify why he never came forward with it earlier on. The fact that he enjoyed reading it would be a secret he decided he was going to keep until the day he died. People might think he was some kind of narcissist for reading so many entries about himself over and over again, skipping the ones where she talked about others.

The entries were engraved into his memory now, but he still fished it out from beneath his mattress, reading it at least once or thrice a week.

Although their conversations weren't very long in person, he felt connected to her, was privy to her private thoughts, her true feelings. He could bet not even her bestfriends knew some of the things that Ryuzaki wrote there. It was like having a secret with her somehow, it felt almost intimate. Almost.

She never made any mention as to why she kept her hair in those braids all the time. He figured it was probably because her hair was too long. Why her hair was as long as it was now was a mystery unto itself as well. It wasn't practical, in his opinion. Ryuzaki's hair probably weighed as much as she did or more. Maybe it was part of the reason why she couldn't balance properly. All that hair must throw her body's stability off, it had to. No one was _that_ clumsy. It defied the laws of probability.

The lessons flew by as the teachers spoke some kind of weird alien language.

He found himself doodling some faceless girl with long flowing hair in math class. When he noticed what he was doing, he promptly ripped the page out of his notebook, crumpled it and threw it on the trash, settling on chewing on his pen instead.

And it looked like it was going to be a promising day this morning, too. _Damn Horio and his big fat mouth!_

∞∞∞∞∞

Operation See Ryuzaki's Braids Undone was still unsuccessful when lunch time rolled by.

"Why don't we just ask her?" A disheartened Kachiro asked his comrades. "Wouldn't it be easier than plotting ways as to how to get Ryuzaki to shed her braids?" Horio was giving him a look of utter disbelief, as if he just suggested they commit some kind of heinous crime. "What?"

"Kachiro, I can tell that you are 'mada mada dane' as of yet."

"Why is he mada mada dane, Horio-kun?" Katsuo inquired.

"Because we haven't executed half of my ingenious plans yet and he's already ready to give up!" Horio scoffed. "My two years of tennis experience –"

"Has nothing to do with Ryuzaki's hair." Kachiro finished.

"Aaaah, urusai! I don't see any of you having two years worth of tennis experience, so just shut up and follow my lead, okay?"

"But you're leading us nowhere!"

"Well I don't see **you** having any good plans!" Kachiro was quiet. Horio was right; he didn't have any good plans. "But I do and it's simple!"

Kachiro exchanged a dubious glance with Katsuo. "And what would that be?"

"We follow her and she's bound to unbind her hair at some point."

∞∞∞∞∞

"This is harder than I thought." The unibrow on his forehead wobbled frustratingly.

"Maybe we should give up, Horio-kun." Katsuo didn't really mean it. He really wanted to see how Ryuzaki's hair looked like without the confines of her braids, but the challenge looked easier before. A full day passed and they still haven't made any progress. All their attempts to get to see Ryuzaki's hair down have proven fruitless. Katsuo and Kachiro were ready to just _ask_ Ryuzaki into showing them her hair down but Horio was being stubborn.

"There is no honor in giving up!" Horio sniffed conceitedly. "We have taken on this task and we must finish it to the end! And now that it has come to this, I'm even more determined to see it!"

"What are you ichinen talking about?" Someone hissed from behind the freshmen trio, making them jump.

"K-Kaidoh-senpai!" The trio cowered fearfully.

"Well? Fsssssh…" Snake-like eyes glared impatiently.

"We were um… um… just talking about Ryuzaki-chan's um… hair…!" Anyone with survival instincts would be afraid for their lives right about now.

"Are you talking about Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter?" Kaidoh intimidated a lot of people, but he remembered the girl being friendly with him. If that wasn't an oddity unto itself, it even went to the extent of even giving him Valentine's Day chocolates this year. He was at a loss of what to give her back on White Day, which was this week. No girl had ever given him anything before, so he was new to this. She was a nice girl. If someone was talking bad about her, it was his duty to set them straight.

"H-h-hai!" Horio had been reduced to a stuttering mess.

"What about her hair?" Even if he didn't look it, Kaidoh paid attention to the things and people around him. Was there something wrong with Ryuzaki-chan's hair? He didn't know a lot about females and their hairs so he couldn't tell if there was something wrong with her hair or not.

Horio prayed for courage and his continued good health. "W-we were just w-wondering how Ryuzaki's hair w-would look like without the b-braids, K-K-Kaidoh-senpai."

Kaidoh wasn't the type to gossip about people. He was normally a quiet person who kept to himself and mingled only for the sake of furthering his tennis skills. Things like secrets, rumors or girls' hairs were beneath him. His glare gave the ichinen trio heart attacks. "I've always wondered how Ryuzaki looks like if she wore her hair down. Fssssh."

∞∞∞∞∞

Ryoma stared at the bear that was sitting on his desk, debating whether he should bring it to school or not.

Today was White Day.

Ryuzaki had given him chocolates last month so the only proper thing to do was give her something in exchange this White Day, right? _Right!_ A little voice inside his head agreed.

_But…_

Buchou and the others would know if they saw her with the bear. He didn't want anybody misinterpreting his intentions. There was no need to put meaning into something that clearly didn't mean anything.

If he gave her the wretched bear, she might think that he _liked _her or something. He liked her… as an almost-friend. She was one of the Seigaku Tennis Club's cheerleaders, almost part of the team. They were almost friends, that's all. Almost friends gave each other gifts all the time, right?

Almost friends weren't supposed to read too much into stuff that weren't there, so there shouldn't be any problem. _Right!_ That voice in his head agreed again.

He was lost in his internal debate as he went downstairs to eat.

He thanked his cousin for the breakfast absentmindedly and drank all three bottles of milk like the good boy that he was. He didn't even pay any attention to his father as he talked to him. He saw his oyaji's mouth open and close while looking at him, but the words coming out of his mouth weren't making sense.

It wasn't related to a certain brown thing with frilly pink lace so whatever his father was saying was irrelevant.

His internal voices continued their dialogue as he finished eating, deciding that White Day wasn't so bad after all.

The normal Ryuzaki-sounding voice dictating an entry from her diary inside his head was suspiciously absent today. And it was all because he finally managed to get rid of it. Nope, no diary-quoting for him today or_ ever_ because he was finally over it. After spending several countless days fretting over it, having her entries follow him around making commentaries about every single thing that triggered a memory, it was finally over.

His mood was greatly improved by the time he laced his shoes together and picked up his bag to go to school. He was early and he was happy because that meant extra time for early morning practice.

His frazzled nerves had absolutely nothing to do with and weren't caused by the furry little creature hidden inside his tennis bag.

∞∞∞∞∞

"Ohayou, Sakuno-chan!"

It was still very early in the morning, but a few students walked by and gave them curious looks. It wasn't everyday that you saw a student wearing a different uniform talking to one of their own in front of the school.

"Ohayou, Shinji-kun!"

Sakuno's tennis lessons with Shinji-kun were normally held on Fridays, but he had called her yesterday and asked if they could meet in front of Seigaku really early that morning. She correctly guessed that he wanted to give her something for White Day, when he cheerfully handed her a whole bag of treasures as soon as he arrived.

The bag was filled with assorted candies and chocolates, strawberry pocky and there were even pink ribbons to use for her hair. It was a well-known fact that pink was Sakuno's favorite color. One only had to look at her stuff – tennis gears, embroidered handkerchiefs, cellphone, sweatbands, clothes, shoes just to name a few – to reach that conclusion.

They were all gifts from the Fudomine Regulars and Ann-chan, Shinji-kun told her. "They all wanted to come but I offered to bring it to you instead and they could just see you on Friday."

Sakuno accepted the gifts happily, picking out the bear she recognized as the one that Kippei no nii-chan had made last weekend. "I can't believe he's giving this to me." She cuddled the bear close. "Are you sure Kippei no nii-chan didn't make any mistake?" Sakuno made sure.

Shinji nodded. "I would have wanted to make a bear with Sakuno-chan." He said with a hint of displeasure. He had been in a dilemma on what to give her on White Day and was a little annoyed at his teammates about leaving him out of their outing last weekend. "I wonder why Tachibana-san didn't call me. Neither did Ann-chan but I figure at least Kamio would have been decent enough to give me a call eh…"

Sakuno tried to comfort Shinji by petting his hand. "There, there Shinji-kun." She didn't mean for Shinji-kun to feel left out. Everybody sort of just showed up at the mall and went with them last weekend, so no plans were made ahead of time. If she knew that more people aside from Ann-chan and Tomo-chan were coming and if she knew that Shinji-kun also wanted to make a bear, she would have invited him. "I can go with you and we can build you your own bear if you want."

"You'd really do that for me, Sakuno-chan?" Shinji felt better when Sakuno-chan nodded at him. He didn't really want to make a bear, he just didn't like it that he was left out.

"Of course." Sakuno was happy to accompany him to the Workshop if he wanted a bear of his own.

"That's okay," Shinji's lips curved into a small smile for his friend before he voiced out his true thoughts. "I don't really want to build a bear, I was just feeling left out that you went with Tachibana-san and Kamio but not with me." He never failed to speak his mind as always. "But I feel better now." Shinji patted Sakuno's hand back, a sure sign that he was feeling better. "I wonder how Kamio's bear turned out. He refuses to show it to me. Tachibana-san wouldn't even talk about 'the incident'. He refuses to delve into it further when others question him. Maybe he's embarrassed, but I couldn't really tell since he declines to answer my questions."

"I think Kamio-kun is going to give his bear to Ann-chan," Sakuno confided in him. "Call it instinct." She grinned.

"It will be interesting to observe how he's going to give it to her today."

"I wish I could be there," Sakuno chuckled as she tried to play the scene in her mind. "I wonder if Momo-senpai would be giving Ann-chan his bear."

"Kamio wouldn't be too happy with that." Shinji blurted out the obvious and the two of them shared a laugh.

"You should've seen them, Shinji-kun," Sakuno retold the events of last weekend to him in between giggles. It was obvious that the two men shared affection for Ann-chan, but Sakuno couldn't tell which boy Ann-chan liked the most. Both were good friends of hers and she wouldn't be able to play favorites, but truth be told, she was secretly rooting for Momo-senpai; maybe because they both went to the same school…

Shinji already knew most of this from Ann-chan but listened attentively and laughed at the difference in perspectives.

∞∞∞∞∞

He knew he was acting out of character, but he just couldn't help it. Tachibana's little sister's words kept repeating themselves over and over and over again in his head until he felt like he was on auto drive.

He contemplated the whole thing for the past two days and finally reached a decision.

He felt so pumped that the motions of the bus didn't even lull him to sleep like it normally did. He spotted two long braids with his keen eyesight right away, she was talking to a tall figure wearing what he recognized as a Fudomine school uniform and she was already carrying a whole bag of goodies.

He approached them, undeterred. They were too busy laughing at the joke they shared they didn't even notice his presence until he cleared his throat. "Ohayou, Sakuno-chan!"

Sakuno's eyes widened as she identified who it was. "Akaya-kun? What are you doing here?" Oh my, did he get lost sleeping on the bus again?

Akaya flashed that patented crooked smile of his. "I just came early to give you something." Rummaging through his backpack, he found the unsquished ball of fluff and handed it over to her. "Happy White Day!"

"Is that another bear from last weekend?" Shinji ventured a guess that this guy was with Tachibana-san and the others.

"Why yes," Akaya answered as Sakuno blinked hesitantly.

"Are you sure you want to give that away?" Sakuno wondered what she did to deserve getting two bears on the same day. "Akaya-kun worked really hard for it and I don't want to take that away from you."

Akaya pushed the bear into her once again. "I'm not really into the habit of collecting stuffed animals, Sakuno-chan." He took her hand and gave her the bear. Didn't she want it? He came all this way to Seigaku bright and early today and she didn't even want to accept his gift? He saw a teddy bear peaking from her loot and pretended to look crushed. "Oh. I see. You already have a bear that's why you don't want mine."

Sakuno's eyes widened into saucers, horrified that she managed to offend Akaya-kun. "No!" She grabbed the bear from Akaya's hands and cuddled it close. "I was just making sure you wanted to give it away, I mean… thank you, I don't know what to say! Arigatou gozaimasu, Akaya-kun!" The boys watched as Sakuno's face flushed different shades of pink. "I- I didn't give you anything last month..." She finished weakly, shoulders drooping. "I'm sorry." Honey-colored bangs covered her eyes while her bottom lip quivered.

"That's alright, Sakuno-chan! It's my way of thanking you and call it an all-in-one friendship bear."

"All-in-one friendship bear?" Shinji has never heard of such a thing, but then he wasn't a teddy bear expert. "Who are you again?" He knew who the guy was, but they had never been formally introduced.

Sakuno snapped out of her guilt. "Mou! Where did my manners go? Shinji-kun, this is Kirihara Akaya." She introduced the two boys. "Akaya-kun goes to Rikkai Dai. Akaya-kun this is Ibu Shinji. Shinji-kun goes to Fudomine."

The two hesitantly bowed a little, acknowledging each other. "Nice to formally meet you." Akaya wondered why he was here.

"I didn't know you were friends with him, Sakuno-chan." Shinji, as usual, was straight to the point.

"We met this weekend." Akaya replied and then asked a question of his own. "So what is a student from Fudomine doing at Seigaku so early in the morning?" Classes wouldn't even start for two more hours at least. It was way early, so they could afford a few more minutes of sizing each other up until they had to go get to their own schools.

"The same thing reason you probably have," Shinji answered. He was trying to decide whether to like the guy or not. Kirihara a few inches taller than him but he wasn't the least bit intimidated. He met the challenge in the boy's eyes with his usual blank look.

Sakuno was oblivious to the two males posturing. "Shinji-kun was kind enough to offer and bring his teammates gifts for today." She pushed things around in the bag to make room for Akaya-kun's gift. _Yay, two teddy bears!_ This was starting out to be the best White Day ever, and it was only beginning!

"Are you courting Sakuno-chan?" Shinji was honestly curious. Sakuno-chan was younger than him therefore he was responsible for her. If her senpai weren't looking out for her, the responsibility fell to his shoulders.

"Eh?" Sakuno blinked, looking a little lost.

Akaya again replied with another question of his own. "Are _you_?" He thought that Sakuno would be on heavy guard from what he witnessed last weekend, but if someone from Fudomine was courting her, then they weren't good guards at all.

"I asked you a question first."

The world around them seemed to have stopped; everything else was ignored as it narrowed down to only the three of them - two boys trying to stare each other down with a very disconcerted girl in between them. "Anou…" Sakuno was confused why Shinji-kun asked the question and why the air felt like it was loaded with static electricity. She looked from one friend to another, not realizing the curious stares they were getting from the Seishun Gakuen students trickling in.

The Seigaku pupils were curious about the two boys from two different schools in front of their school's entrance who looked like they were arguing. Was there going to be a fight? Why were they here so early in the morning? Didn't they have classes to attend at their own schools? Was that Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter?

Akaya's smile didn't quite reach his eyes. "No." _Not yet._ "Are _you_?" He repeated.

Amusement was laced in Shinji's eyes as his mouth curved a tiny bit. The guy was cocky for sure but he didn't seem like he had anything sinister planned. He would have to watch the guy carefully but he was okay in Shinji's book, for now at least. "So you came all the way here just to give a friend something for White Day? That's very… interesting. It makes me wonder what your true intentions are." The menace in the air thickened. "And to answer your question, no, I'm not. That would be like committing incest." _So that's why._

He placed a brotherly hand on Sakuno-chan's shoulder and as sudden as it was there, the static in the air disappeared, the atmosphere shifted.

"You're lucky Fudomine is nearer." It was as if they were talking about the weather all along.

"I give Sakuno-chan tennis lessons every Friday," Shinji even volunteered the information. He relaxed his posture and his voice had a friendlier tone to it.

"So _you're_ the reason why her Fridays are full!" Akaya even managed to joke, falling into rhythm. "Maybe I could see one of those lessons sometime. I'm not too bad at tennis as well, if I do say so myself."

"I wouldn't mind. Tachibana-san rarely comes with us to the public courts but most of the other Regulars are always there with Ann-chan. You could play a set with any one of us when you come."

"I should do that. It sounds like fun." If he ever got off early from practice and enough permission to stay out late, he could definitely pencil it in one of these days. It was a good thing that this Ibu fellow was forthcoming with the details. So far, everybody he's met from Fudomine had been friendly to him. He decided they weren't a bad school after all.

"And Sakuno-chan brings the best snacks."

Sakuno's eyes were threatening to take over half of her face; she was befuddled at the way their conversation was going. First they were acting almost hostile with each other and now they're swapping invitations for tennis lessons?

"Are you two lost?" a new voice approached them; he was toting a tennis bag on his left shoulder, the word 'Seigaku' printed clearly.

"Ah! Ohayou buchou!" Sakuno all but forgot about her earlier confusion as she greeted Seigaku's respected buchou cheerfully.

"Ohayou, Sakuno-chan." Tezuka returned the greeting and then looked at the two boys, waiting for them to answer his earlier question. What were they doing here? Well, it _was_ White Day. He could understand Ibu Shinji from Fudomine being here. Judging from the bag that Sakuno-chan carried, Tezuka quickly surmised that Ibu came to drop it off in behalf of the others, but what was Kirihara doing here?

The captain had a clear guess of what the boy was doing here and had it confirmed when the boy replied. "I just came to drop something off." He grinned cheekily at Seigaku's buchou, not intimidated at all.

"That's nice." The unflappable captain was never famous for being an expert in pleasantries. "If you don't want to be late, I suggest that you get going." It wasn't a suggestion at all; it was an order.

"I guess it's about time for me to get to school now," Shinji took the hint as he bid farewell. "I'll see you on Friday, Sakuno-chan."

"See you Friday, Shinji-kun!" Sakuno stood next to Tezuka as she waved goodbye to her friend. "And thanks again!"

Akaya decided to try to annoy Tezuka a little by staying until Shinji disappeared in the horizon before saying his goodbyes as well. "Text you later." Were his parting words to Sakuno then he too left. "Have a nice day, Tezuka!"

Tezuka breathed a mental sigh of relief after they both left. More and more students were coming and he didn't look forward to Echizen seeing those two here, most especially Kirihara, after last weekend. One had to have very keen observation skills, because it wouldn't be obvious to anybody who wasn't familiar with the boy's mannerisms, but Echizen had been acting like a walking keg of gunpowder lately. He wasn't exactly looking forward to the day when someone lit a fire under him.

He needed his Pillar of Support calm and on top of his game. He didn't want to have a raving tween on his hands, so he deemed it best if he looked out for his Pillar's interests, even if the boy didn't realize it yet. It was his duty as the buchou and as Echizen's senpai. That was the honorable thing to do.

_But first…_

∞∞∞∞∞

"Why don't we just **ask** her, Horio-kun?" Kachiro couldn't help but whine. This 'quest' was getting ridiculous. Nothing good would come from trailing Ryuzaki in a chance to get a glimpse of how her hair looked down. She kept it in those braids **all** the time. They never invaded her privacy by peeking while she changed or went to the bathroom, but it was absurd to think that Ryuzaki would suddenly take her hair and unbraid it if they were just patient enough to stick around and wait for it.

Horio's plan was a bust.

"We haven't gotten anywhere!" Katsuo was of the same mind as Kachiro. "We're just wasting time." Morning practice meant picking up the balls that their senpai-tachi and the Regulars discarded. Horio's bragging was keeping him from picking up the balls, making Katsuo and Kachiro make up for the slack.

Ryoma was practicing on the court next to them, doing a great job of ignoring their senseless gossip. He couldn't believe Horio was still set about that. Talk about obsessed. If Horio showed as much enthusiasm for tennis as he did for gossiping, he could probably improve his tennis.

Horio wagged a finger at his comrades. "But that's where you're wrong, my friends." It was true that they haven't managed to see Ryuzaki's hair down, but all the _observing_ they've been doing have given him a lot of 'good data' as Inui-senpai would say. "We might not know as of yet how it looks like, but I found something_ very_ interesting today."

"Let me guess," Kachiro sighed cheerlessly. "You figured out who Ryuzaki talks and texts to on that phone of hers all the time?" The days spent spying on Ryuzaki weren't _totally_ fruitless.

They managed to observe her daily habits and keep track of her schedule so far, like how she liked to stop at the local Pantasia instead of the bigger St. Pierre's Bakery across the street almost everyday after school. She seemed really well-acquainted with the staff, especially with the guy with the pink headband and the guy with the pink hair, whom they all mistook to be a girl at first glance because of the color of his hair. Anyone would assume that someone with pink hair would be a girl, right?

Days that weren't spent in Pantasia were spent in McDonald's, usually with Osakada. Yes, Katsuo and Kachiro felt like total stalkers, but Horio insisted that it was all part of the 'See Ryuzaki's Hair' project and therefore totally justified in labeling it 'data gathering'.

Horio grinned. "No." Kachiro wanted to hurl a tennis ball at him. "It's better than that." Katsuo tossed several balls into the basket as he rolled his eyes. He was ready to shove one or two balls down Horio's throat before the boy continued "You'll never guess who I saw give Ryuzaki teddy bears this morning."

Unable to block out their conversation, short of plugging his ears with cotton, Ryoma almost missed hitting the ball that he just tossed into the air to make a serve. Thank Kami for his fast reflexes.

"It's White Day today." Kachiro stated the obvious.

"And someone gave Ryuzaki a teddy bear?" Katsuo snuck a glance at Echizen.

Horio didn't miss it. "Nope, not him. Try again."

Unable to take the combined torture of having to put up with Horio's nonchalance at their task at hand and his dragging the details for more suspense, Kachiro grumpily complained. "Can you tell us while you're helping us pick the balls up?"

Horio sniffed but obeyed and began to pick up the balls in his vicinity, placing them on the basket. "Do you want to know or not?" His friends gave him a look that clearly said 'yes, duh', so he took pity on them. "I counted three and those were just the bears. She had a full bag of them and I haven't gotten a closer look of what else was in the bag yet but I'm sure there were at least three bears plus some." He planned to rectify that as soon as he got the chance of course.

"And first period hasn't even started yet." Kachiro was clearly impressed. He doubted if Ryuzaki was aware of it, but she was actually quite popular in their school, and it wasn't just because she was Ryuzaki-sensei's granddaughter. He _knew_ she was popular, but he didn't know to what extent until now.

"Three bears?" Katsuo was also impressed. "Ryuzaki and the three bears, hehe." He laughed at his own joke.

"Haha, yes, very funny." Horio tossed a couple more balls into the basket. "Don't you want to know who they were from?"

"Yes but you've been delaying telling us for five minutes now. Just get on with it!"

"Geez, calm down will you?" Horio sadistically picked up more balls and placed them inside the basket before he answered. "One was from Ibu Shinji." He was sure of it. Why else would he purposely go to Seigaku bright and early on a school day, right?

"Is Ryuzaki dating Ibu Shinji from Fudomine?" Kachiro questioned.

Ryoma was thankful he had his white cap on for it hid the rolling of his eyes at their foolish conversation. Horio would _never_ make a good detective. Ryoma hasn't seen the bear yet, but he would willingly eat his cap if the bear wasn't from Tachibana Kippei and Shinji was just playing messenger boy. Shinji probably volunteered to be the one to make sure to give the gifts to Ryuzaki is all. Horio didn't know a damn thing.

"Hmmm…" Katsuo threw a sideward glance at Echizen once more, trying to judge his reaction. Although it was obvious that Ryuzaki had feelings for the young tennis prince, nobody could really make certain for sure if Echizen reciprocated those feelings.

Ryoma had to resist rolling his eyes once again. Did they think he didn't notice all the curious glances they threw his way? What did they think he was – Some Kind of Oblivious? Since their gossiping was beneath him, he paid them no mind and concentrated on his serves instead. Nothing was going to ruin his day today. Not Katsuo, not Kachiro, not Horio, not the loaded atmosphere and different expectations of people for this day and most especially not the fuzzy in his bag.

"And what about the other two?" Kachiro prodded the boy with more tennis experience than them.

"Well," Horio twirled a tennis ball around his hand, "I don't know if you'll believe me when I tell you this but one of the bears was from Kirihara."

Kachiro and Katsuo looked at him in disbelief. "From Rikkai Dai?" Kachiro thought Horio was pulling their leg.

"What would _he_ be doing giving Ryuzaki a bear?" Katsuo blinked. "I didn't even know they were acquainted with each other." He blinked again in disbelief.

"Well apparently they are because he came bright and early just a few minutes after Ibu and I saw him hand over the thing to her with my own eyes." Horio huffed in importance. "Are you saying that you doubt what I saw? I know what I saw you know, and I saw it clearly with my own two eyes!"

If it was just Horio telling them this, Kachiro might not have believed him. But he saw the darkened mood of Echizen as he placed more power into his serves and shook his head at Horio. "No, I believe you."

"So who gave her the third bear?" He thought it odd how Horio would say Kirihara's name second – whoever the third bear was from must be more impressive in Horio's eyes than the Rikkai Dai ace.

Horio glanced around before leaning forward and dropped his voice to a whisper. "The buchou gave it to her."

Kachiro and Katsuo busted out laughing at Horio's face. "That's a good one, Horio-kun!" Kachiro said in between fits of amusement.

"Yeah," Kachiro agreed. "You almost had us there." He was holding on to the edge of the basket for some balance from his mirth. The thought of the buchou giving Ryuzaki a bear was hilarious. The buchou was the greatest tennis player in Seigaku, but he wasn't exactly Mr. Romantic. He couldn't even imagine the buchou _holding _a teddy bear, much less _giving_ a girl one.

"I don't see anything funny with what I said." Horio for once was dead serious. He couldn't believe his eyes at first either, he thought he was dreaming, but facts were facts and the evidence was solid. "As sure as the sun rises in the east, I clearly saw the buchou give Ryuzaki a teddy bear." He added more than a bit miffed. "You think I would lie about something like this?"

"Well… no." Kachiro managed to sober up. Sure Horio-kun was over confident at times and tended to brag about his tennis experience at the most inappropriate moments, but he wasn't the type of person to speak bad about their buchou. **Everybody** respected the buchou, including Horio and his two years of tennis experience.

Silence reigned as Kachiro and Katsuo stopped laughing, minds reeling at what the gift meant.

"I'm sure it was just some kind of friendly gift… you know… because Ryuzaki is the coach's granddaughter and she gave him chocolates last Valentine's Day." Kachiro's reasoning seemed to make sense.

"Yeah, that's exactly it!" Katsuo wholeheartedly agreed. "I have a thank you gift for Ryuzaki myself, for last month's chocolates, so I'm sure buchou was just returning the favor." He nodded enthusiastically, yes, that was it. Ryuzaki was kind enough to include all the Regulars and the Ichinen Trio in her chocolates list last year and it seemed like he wasn't the only one who was thinking of reciprocating the kindness.

"Is it a teddy bear?" Horio challenged. "A boy wouldn't give a girl a teddy bear if they were just friends."

"Well…" No, it wasn't a teddy bear, it was chocolate. From one friend to another.

Horio rephrased his question. "Would **you** give a girl a teddy bear if you didn't **like** her?" Kachiro and Katsuo refused to answer his question, since their answer was obvious. "I thought so," Horio smirked.

"But what does that _mean_?" Kachiro was concerned for what this would translate into their club. If the buchou had feelings for Ryuzaki and Ryuzaki had feelings for Echizen… wait, did Ryuzaki _still_ have feelings for Echizen? She had been spending a lot of time with Fuji-senpai lately…

"What would Ryuzaki-sensei say when she finds out?" Katsuo had different things on his mind. He was more concerned about the well-being of their beloved captain. Their scary sensei was even scarier than a demon when it came to protecting her precious granddaughter. He didn't think that even their brave buchou could survive their sensei's wrath.

Kachiro shook his head in denial. "Wait, wait, we're jumping to conclusions here. I'm sure there's a logical explanation for all of this." He was going to try hard not to settle on a verdict until he heard more facts, however difficult it may seem.

Katsuo decided to adapt Kachiro's frame of mind and purged the thoughts milling around his brain. "Yes, I'm sure there's a logical explanation for this. Just because buchou gave Ryuzaki a teddy bear doesn't mean they're an item."

"Maybe they're hiding it from the Ryuzaki-sensei because she's bound to skin the buchou alive and string him up against the nearest tree if she finds out. And if they really are dating, I wonder if the buchou has seen Ryuzaki's hair down – ow!" Horio was propelled forward, landing on his hands and knees as a tennis ball hit him square behind his head. He rubbed the back of his head to ease the pain as he straightened up and glared at the perpetrator. "Echizen!"

"Ah, gomen Horio! I've wanted to try out Ohtori's Scud Serves for a while now. I guess I need to control it more."

Horio thought that Echizen looked totally unrepentant for his actions but continued to pick up the balls and went back to his whispered conversation with his friends.

Kaidoh, who was on the court next to the one Echizen and the ichinen trio were using, wondered if Horio was naturally obtuse or just plain retarded. He could tell that even Kachiro and Katsuo were aware of the dangerous shift in Echizen's mood at Horio's latest speculations.

"Maybe their love affair is supposed to be a secret and I found them out due to my superior shinobi skills." A fast serve whizzed dangerously close past Horio's ear and bounced on the wall. "Ack!" He stumbled and knocked the basket of balls out of balance, spilling all the balls they've been gathering on the court.

"Oy, ichinen!" Kaidoh chastised the gossiping trio. "Stop slacking off and get back to work! Fssssshh…" As much as he loved listening to the trio's speculations, he didn't look forward to accidentally getting close and personal with Echizen's imitation Scud Serves this morning.

"Hai!" The trio obediently replied as they picked up the pace.

But Horio just couldn't keep his mouth closed. "I always thought Ryuzaki had feelings for someone else, you know." He had it all figured out now. "A heart is such a fickle thing." He sighed dramatically. "I can't say I could blame her, I mean _if_ **I** was a girl I would probably choose Tezuka-buchou over you-know-who. Tezuka-buchou is so much more mature and would probably make a better boyfriend." Kachiro and Katsuo started edging away from Horio. "He probably treats her right and doesn't insult her bento or her hair, you know?"

The distance between Horio and his friends were getting wider and wider with each sentence that came out of his mouth yet he didn't seem to notice.

"I heard that he baby-sits her sometimes – that must have been how they got together," and wider. They even managed to drag the basket of balls with them. "Maybe Ryuzaki's supposed crush on you-know-who is just a ruse to throw Ryuzaki-sensei off their tracks." Horio was impressed with his astuteness. They should be calling him a prodigy, the next Fuji Syusuke of Seigaku. "Hey, what are you two doing so far out there?" He became acutely aware that his comrades were now a good three feet away from him. Weren't they in awe of his brilliant deduction skills and impressive insight?

Too bad he failed to use his impressive astuteness and discerning skills to avoid the fast ball that was headed straight for him.

∞∞∞∞∞

"Sakuno, is everything alright?"

Sakuno jumped a bit into the air at the question before turning to answer her bestfriend. "I'm fine, Tomo-chan. Why do you ask?" She smiled tentatively.

One of Tomoka's brows rose in question. "You seem a bit jumpier than usual." Sakuno was acting like a hunted rabbit.

"It's nothing, I'm alright." In truth, she felt like she was being watched for several days now but had no evidence to back it up. It was just her overactive imagination, that's all. Why would anyone be stalking her anyway? Just because she felt several eyes watching her every move for several days now didn't mean that people were actually observing her every move.

_Stop being paranoid, Sakuno._

"Okay, if you say so." Tomoka shot her one more dubious glance but believed her anyway. It was recess time and they were eating outside, taking advantage of the nice weather. It was nice to get away from the noise of the cafeteria once in a while, just the two of them hanging out like this.

The bench they were sitting on suddenly vibrated with Sakuno's phone, making both girls jump this time. "Again?" Tomoka couldn't help but feel a little irritated. This wasn't the first message that Sakuno got today. Her cellphone had been vibrating nonstop since _really_ early this morning.

Sakuno was polite; she turned the sounds off on her cellphone during class hours or when she was on campus. She either put it on vibrate mode or turned it off altogether. Since today was White Day, it was expected that the girls receive attention ranging from text messages, calls or people giving them gifts in exchange for the gifts they handed out last month for Valentine's Day.

Sakuno was a part of a big family and was doted upon, being the youngest. Calls, presents and attention flooded in from each family member, understandably, most especially today for it was a special day. Thus her phone was on vibrating mode instead of off today.

Sakuno's family was the type to celebrate most things ranging from Valentine's Day, birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, Christmas and Easter to the extreme. These were the same people who believed that celebrating a person's first, tenth, and thirteenth birthdays were as important as celebrating the sixteenth, eighteenth and twenty first.

Tomoka could see how a person's first birthday was important, but Sakuno had to explain to her how the tenth and thirteenth birthdays were as important as sweet sixteen or coming of age at eighteen and twenty one.

A person's tenth birthday, Sakuno said, marked the point in a person's life where another digit is added to the age. Ages one to nine only have one digit and the next time a third digit is added to the age is **if** and when the person turns one hundred, which doesn't really happen a lot. Because of this rare event, age ten is considered a special occasion in the Ryuzaki family and celebrated accordingly.

Age thirteen marks the right of passage of the person to becoming a 'teen', thus it was special. Being a teenager meant that you could be trusted with more stuff that you normally wouldn't, time to prove yourself worthy of responsibilities. It's also the time when Ryuzakis usually get their birds and bees talk; it was the time to induct the teenager to some facts of life.

Sixteenth, eighteenth and twenty first birthdays were important to most people, but Tomoka knew for a fact that it was going to be more important for Sakuno, especially her twenty first birthday. Even now they talked about doing twenty one different tasks involving twenty one different things on the day that Sakuno turns twenty one and Sakuno wasn't even thirteen yet!

It wasn't a surprise that Sakuno received a lot of gifts this White Day. Even if she wouldn't admit it to anybody or believe whatever her friends said, Sakuno's expertise in the kitchen were _way_ beyond 'Tezuka class' if you were to compare it in junior high tennis. Tomoka liked to joke about how Sakuno must have forgotten to get good balance and sense of direction when Kami was handing out those abilities because she was too busy getting in line for having great cooking skills.

Tomoka finished her snacks and reached for one of Sakuno's JaPan breads for dessert. It really paid to have a bestfriend who could whip up the most delicious meals and confections known to man; even more so if that friend was related to a world renowned baker. It wasn't a well-known fact, but Sakuno was Azuma Kazuma's second cousin.

Azuma Kazuma was famous all over Japan, having been the MVP on a world-class bread tournament held in Morocco at the young age of sixteen. His paternal grandfather is Ryuzaki-sensei's oldest brother, Sakuno's father being Kazuma's father's first cousin. He had his own line of bread made from his very own recipe, and he called them "JaPan". Clearly, talent in the food industry ran in the family.

Sakuno was so engrossed in texting back that she failed to notice Tomoka's annoyed expression. Not even the authentic Azuma-made JaPan could wipe the sour look on her face.

Now Tomoka wasn't annoyed at Sakuno, no. She was annoyed at Sakuno's phone and her textmate. The person had been texting Sakuno ever since the girl came to school on Monday and today had been the worst by far. She would even bet her presidency on her beloved Ryoma-sama's fanclub that her bestfriend was currently texting that rogue from Rikkai Dai, too. Her bestfriend senses were tingling.

She could also further bet that that wretched Ann from Fudomine was the one to give Sakuno's number to that boy. Tomoka had been curious about him last Saturday, she even found herself enjoying his company while they were making bears, but that was before she noticed how much attention he gave Sakuno.

Tomoka didn't like it if other boys aside from her beloved Ryoma-sama got too close to her bestfriend. She didn't mind the other Seigaku Regulars and students, for they were part of their little family, so to speak, but nobody was allowed to play matchmaker between Sakuno and anybody else who wasn't Ryoma-sama without going through her first.

She didn't see Sakuno give Kirihara her number that Saturday, so the only logical conclusion was that Ann had somehow given the boy Sakuno's number without Tomoka's permission. Again, she cursed why Sakuno had to call Ann instead of her when she borrowed Kirihara's phone. If Sakuno had called _her_ instead of the other girl, Sakuno wouldn't have a new textmate right now. Ann's underhanded tactics was grating on her nerves. It was one thing to befriend people, and quite another to play matchmaker between them.

No, it wasn't enough that he not only bombarded Sakuno with text messages. Messages, by the way, which Sakuno seemed to greatly enjoy if the constant smile playing on her lips was any proof, no it wasn't enough. The boy actually had the nerve to **come** _here_ early this morning to hand Sakuno a bear for White Day!

Tomoka's blood boiled at the thought.

Sakuno didn't even know Akaya last Valentine's Day, therefore she didn't give anything to the boy to make him go all the way to Seigaku early in the morning just to drop it off. What was he playing at? Ibu Shinji from Fudomine, Tomoka could tolerate. The boy seemed to be deprived of anybody who was willing to sit through his lectures when he spoke his mind except for Sakuno. Tomoka wasn't going to begrudge him of that because she felt the same way.

Nobody else would tolerate her loud and bossy attitude except for Sakuno. She intimidated most people and most people couldn't understand the burning passion she had. Ibu was the same as her, but she couldn't say the same thing about Kirihara.

How dare he give Sakuno a bear?

And what about Ryoma-sama? Sure it was only recess, but most of the girls in the school received most of their gifts already. She has yet to see what Ryoma-sama was going to give Sakuno.

"Aren't you done with that yet?" Tomoka said crossly, glaring at the offending phone.

Sakuno blushed, feeling guilty for ignoring her friend. She couldn't text message during class so she had to sneak it in between periods, while waiting for the next teacher. Recess had been the biggest break so far and she was just taking advantage of it. She didn't stop to think that she was being rude to her bestfriend.

"Gomen nasai, Tomo-chan!" She sent one more message before putting her phone away.

"Who are you texting anyway?" Tomoka frowned even more as Sakuno's blush deepened.

"It's just Akaya-kun, being silly."

"You know Sakuno," it was time to give her bestfriend some advice "you shouldn't get _too_ close to him."

Sakuno blinked curiously. "Why not, Tomo-chan?" What was wrong with being friends with the guy?

"Because people might think that there's something between you two." _And Ryoma-sama might not like it._ "Next thing you know people are going to assume he's your boyfriend or something!" Tomoka visibly shivered, freaked out by the possibility of Sakuno having a boyfriend who wasn't her beloved Ryoma-sama.

Sakuno thought it was funny and laughed. "But that's silly!" Her shoulders shook in merriment.

"It's not funny and I'm being serious!"

"But it is! It **is** funny! It reminds me of how Atobe-san kept calling me the buchou's girlfriend and wouldn't listen to reason."

Tomoka refused to crack a smile even if she agreed that Atobe was acting loony the last time they saw him. "All that ego must have affected his brain." She couldn't resist.

"He's not _that_ bad," Sakuno grimaced from her unconvinced tone.

"No, he's not." Tomoka suddenly agreed. "He's _worse_. Can you imagine if other people believed what he was saying?" As much as she liked Tezuka-buchou, she liked Ryoma-sama for Sakuno more.

Sakuno made a face. "He's just… umm… very… enthusiastic when it comes to Tezuka-buchou." One must always find the good in a person, no matter how big an ego they had. "He just got carried away but I'm sure he'll realize that buchou wouldn't have a girlfriend like me." She was just some lowly freshmen who tagged along with him.

"Sakuno…"

"Nyah Ryuzaki-chan, there you are!" Kikumaru's voice interrupted whatever Tomoka was going to say as he dragged Oishi behind him. "We've been looking all over for you!"

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

**Urusai** – "noisy", you're "annoying", "shut up"

**Ichinen** – freshmen, "one year"

**P.S.**

Well… crap. This was like 12 pages of nothing. -.- I don't think I liked this chapter at all. 8( White Day is on March 14 but forgive me for being late with this. I've become obsessed with this day instead of Valentine's Day after I saw it on Tsubasa Chronicle and Fruits Basket. ..;; Twenty one for twenty one is taken from Gilmore Girls. Credit goes to Howl's Castle, Voldemort and the whole world in case I missed anybody.

_Marunong lang ako magbilang hanggang sampu so magpasalamat ako kung may magturo sa akin kung ano after that. (weeps)_

**DarkAngelB**, get your dirty mind out of the gutter! XD

**Umi** – Ah sumimasen! If you've read my inspiration for this fic (as mentioned in chapter 1 which is CiraArana's The Diary), you'll notice that the diary entries are longest in the first few chapters and then disappear later on. I couldn't and didn't want to imitate her writing style _all the way_ so I decided to write it my own way, despite ripping it off from her. I was thinking maybe one entry per chapter would be enough… hehe. Gomen! 8D

**Angel** – OMG I didn't even notice there were AtoSaku moments! XD But since you inspired me on that, maybe I'll make it a note to have more of those weird moments in the future. XD Sankyuu and you read my mind. (weeps) Your request was on my mind for the chapter after the next one (maybe). 8D

Hyuu! I didn't have Kirihara/Sakuno in mind when I started this fic, but ever since **ahhmeii** pointed it out, I can't get it out of my mind. .. I _love_ Akaya, even though I haven't gotten to the Rikkai Dai arc _yet_, but I started out with RyoSak on the brain so… I don't know. I'm very susceptible to subliminal messages. ..

Thanks for all your reviews last chapter and keep them coming kudasai! 8D

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	7. Yakitate! Sakuno

**Disclaimer: **If I owned PoT and/or Yakitate! Japan, this crackfic would have been canon. .. (As of this chapter, I'm currently on episode 126, yatta!) I'll try to mask any spoilers or make them vague because I don't want to spoil anyone but I did say that I'll be butchering canon to suit my fangirly needs. XP

**P I T O **

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

If looks could kill, Sakuno would be lying in the pool of her own blood right about now. She was a little slow on the uptake, but by the time her braids got pulled for the seventh time and how a foot would magically appeared out of thin air just as she took a step for what seemed like the umpteenth time before lunch that day, she was slowly catching on. Regardless of what year or age, most of the girls on Seigaku seemed to have some kind of vendetta against her.

She was bewildered at what could have caused the sudden animosity at first, but she had an epiphany when she observed several of them throwing severe hostile looks at the gifts she carried.

_Ah._

Most of the boys seemed to have taken Ann-chan's advice and gave away their bears for White Day. Sakuno guessed that she just happened to be on the receiving end of the bears from Seigaku Regulars because she went to the same school with them, was the granddaughter of their coach, was with them when they made the bears, and they probably didn't know what else to give her in exchange for her Valentine's Day chocolates.

She wasn't complaining, she loved all the bears and they were all going to make good friends with her other stuffed animals at home.

They can't fit into her meager shoe locker, so she had to lug it around with her. It wasn't like she was parading them and bragging about them, because she wasn't. She didn't even examine the insides more carefully; she planned to do it later, after school hours. And it wasn't like she had the most gifts in the entire school! She saw several others with bigger bags than hers, so why was she being singled out?

"Itai!" Her right scalp was burning. She wished she didn't have separate periods from Tomo-chan, as cowardly as that may have seemed.

She tried to think of positive thoughts. At least she wasn't sporting a black eye, unlike Horio-kun. The poor boy had an unfortunate run-in with a stray tennis ball bright and early this morning, he explained.

_Poor Horio-kun._

He wouldn't elaborate further on the cause of his black-eye, so she decided not to press him further. Maybe he was embarrassed about it.

"Itai!" Another sharp tug to her left side caused her to stumble a little. _Did I say Poor Horio-kun? Poor me! What happened to the good karma I thought I had for getting these bears?_

Come to think of it… the 'series of unfortunate events' started after Kikumaru-senpai and Oishi-senpai gave her their bears. Kikumaru-senpai did it with so much grandiose and flourish, attracting unneeded attention to them. Maybe he shouldn't have announced so loudly that one of the bears was from Tezuka-buchou.

Kikumaru had been upset that he wasn't the first one to give her a present and Tomoka had added to that by telling him that even buchou's bear was part of her loot for today. The redhead was so surprised that he managed to inform everybody within the ten mile radius about it when he repeated Tomoka's words in a very loud voice. They could guess from his words that he was still harboring a grudge to not have won the contest, citing that it was Momo's fault for disqualifying him.

It was an unwritten school rule that the lower years aren't usually allowed in the upper years' floors. While there were no guards necessarily posted on each floor to make sure of this, it was understood and most, if not all, of the students respected this rule. The main reason for this is to reduce fangirl attacks. When fangirls got too excited, they tended to overwhelm the athletes and competitions weren't won by flustered participants.

Oishi is a living testament to this. He learned a hard lesson about not venturing into enemy territory unprepared. Twice. The first time he did it, he managed to survive unscathed and in tact. Sure, his hand was numb from giving one autograph after another, but it didn't compare to the bumps and bruises he received when he accidentally walked in on some changing girls during his second 'adventure'.

It had been traumatic for him and he made it a point not to put himself into a vulnerable position anymore. Seeking out a kouhai during break times was different, just as long as one didn't venture into the classrooms where people, most especially girls who wanted your autograph, could literally back you into a wall and corner you until they got what they wanted. Two girls sitting on a bench out in the open was safe enough, so he allowed Kikumaru to drag him.

Receiving additional bears had been really fun for Sakuno. Even if Tomo-chan had more admirers than her, Sakuno didn't feel left out today with all the gifts she received from her beloved senpai-tachi and friends. Pity gifts were just as good as gifts from real admirers, especially if they were stuffed toys, but she didn't exactly relish in the side effects.

She started to fear for her well-being when they started to back her into a corner.

"What are you doing?" Ryoma's voice could have bent steel. What was it with girls and pulling Ryuzaki's braids? He saw the unshed tears gathering in Ryuzaki's eyes and felt his blood boil. It would look ridiculous if he challenged a bunch of girls into a tennis match, so he settled for giving them death glares instead, effectively scaring them away. They scattered like mice, slinking away from the young Regular's wrath.

Sakuno looked at her savior gratefully; her hair and scalp were forever indebted to him. "R-Ryoma-kun…"

"I'll walk you to your next class." Ryoma said and then started walking, expecting Sakuno to follow.

Not giving up the chance to be with him, Sakuno hastened to catch up, wracking her brain for something to talk about. "The weather is nice today. The sky is so blue." _Sakuno no baka! The _weather is nice_? What kind of person talked about the sky being blue?_ Ryoma-kun probably thought her to be an airhead.

"Aa," Ryoma agreed, looking like he wasn't really paying attention to what she said. He was just walking her to her next class so that she didn't get picked on, that was all. The strong have to protect the weak and she was definitely weak. Why else would she allow others to pull on her braids like that without fighting back?

Sakuno sighed. Her vibrating phone saved her from the awkward silence, thankfully, so she took it out of her pocket and read the new message.

Ryoma didn't care that she wasn't talking to him. He didn't care that her attention was directed to that blasted phone of hers again. Not that he cared, of course, because he didn't. He didn't care if Ryuzaki had a textmate. In fact, he didn't care if she had a bazillion textmates. Nope, he didn't care one bit.

He waited until she was safely seated in her next class before he left, not even bothering to say goodbye. He had done his part as a concerned citizen and responsible member of the Seigaku Tennis Club. Tezuka-buchou should be proud of him.

Once he was seated in his own classroom, waiting for his next teacher, he reminded himself again that he didn't care about whom she was texting. He didn't have a cellphone yet, but he wondered if he would be part of her contacts list if he did, and if she would stop texting whoever she was texting to all the time and text him instead.

Wait, what was he talking about? He didn't care, remember?

_But then…_

If he didn't care, then why was he being so emotional about it?

¤¤¤¤¤

"Let me help you with that, Sakuno-chan." Fuji grabbed the bag bursting with teddy bears from his kouhai's hand to relieve her of it.

"Arigatou, Syusuke-nii!"

Sakuno's Tuesdays and Thursdays were spent with 'Big Brother' Syusuke for their English tutoring sessions. Club practice meant going to the Fuji residence and Syusuke-nii walking her to the bus stop and sometimes all the way home (if it was too late), while the non-club practice days were spent in the Ryuzaki residence. Those days were rare, so Sakuno usually did her own extra-curricular activities before meeting with Syusuke-nii afterwards.

She couldn't help but feel safer knowing that Syusuke-nii was going to be stuck with her, so to speak, for the next several hours. One could never be sure if any vindictive girls were going to jump her from behind again or pull her braids. It was better to be safe than sorry.

They stopped by the local Pantasia bakery first, like lots of other students their age.

The bell chimed as they opened the door and walked in. Sakuno and Fuji inhaled deeply, savoring the aroma of fresh-baked bread.

"Irasshaimase!" The Pantasia employee with the mushroom-like haircut automatically greeted them. Sakuno could never seem to remember what his name was, but she returned his greeting with a smile. Then he recognized them, and opened the door to the kitchen, shouting "Azuma, your cousin is here!"

The Azumas were simple folk who lived in the country and grew rice for a living. Ryuzaki Sumire, Sakuno's paternal grandmother, was Azuma Kazuma's paternal grandfather's youngest and only sister. When Sumire got married, she changed her last name from Azuma to Ryuzaki, adapting her husband's.

When Sakuno was little, she would go visit her cousins in the country on summer vacations and her cousins would feed her the most delicious things. Her cousin Kazuma was older than her by four years, but most people wouldn't be able to tell because aside from his not-so-tall stature, he also acted like they were the same age. Despite this, she still addressed her cousin with the proper honorific.

Two Pantasia employees emerged from the back door – one with honey-colored hair similar to Sakuno's and a pink headband on his head, two bangs sticking out and making him look like a cute cockroach, if there was such a thing, and the other had pretty pink hair.

"Sakuno-chyan!" Kazuma bounced toward his cousin excitedly.

"Kazu-nii, Kanmuri-kun!"

Both bakers were also familiar with Fuji. "Tutoring session today, Fuji-kun?" Kanmuri Shigeru greeted the taller boy. Kanmuri and Kazuma were both older than Fuji at sixteen, but Fuji still surpassed them in height.

"Hai, Kanmuri-san."

"Guess what Kanmuri and I got you for today, Sakuno-chyan!" Kazuma was bursting with excitement, forgetting about Fuji altogether.

"Technically," Kanmuri gave his co-worker, business-partner and friend an amused look, "it's from Tsukino-san, but I suggested that Azuma-kun give it to you because it seems to be the rage for teenagers these days." He was so mature for his age, having graduated from Harvard at the age of sixteen.

Tsukino was one of Pantasia's former owner's granddaughters and was now the current President of Pantasia. She had been through rough times with both Kanmuri and Kazuma, but they weathered it all and were now joint business partners. Nobody would suspect that these two boisterous young men were actually billionaires, especially with how they still preferred to work as normal employees at the quaint little bakery where it all started. Maybe one of the reasons was the main St. Pierre's branch from across the street.

"You didn't have to get me anything." Sakuno said shyly.

"Close your eyes and don't peek!" Kazuma instructed then pulled something from his pocket as his cousin complied, placing them in front of her. "Tada! You can open your eyes now."

It took several seconds to register what they were after she opened her eyes. "Tickets?"

"Concert tickets," Fuji observed.

Sakuno happily gave her cousin a thank you hug, grateful for them. There were more than enough for her and her friends; Kazu-nii and Kanmuri-kun even gave two more to Syusuke-nii, ribbing him about bringing a date.

Kazuma was pleased that his cousin seemed happy; Kanmuri's suggestion saved him today. He didn't realize it was White Day until Tsukino gave him the tickets.

"Sakuno-san, did you bring them?" Kanmuri asked the girl as soon as Azuma stopped bouncing around.

"Hai!" Sakuno searched inside her bag for something and then handed them to him.

"Is that what I think it is?" Fuji would recognize that noxious liquid anywhere.

"Inui Juice Hyper Remix Plus and Inui Juice Aozu!" Sakuno counted off the names.

Fuji tried not to visibly blanch at the blue liquid while Kazuma blinked curiously as Kanmuri accepted it happily. He could withstand the taste of the Hyper Remix Juice, but Aozu was dangerous for his health.

"Are those new ingredients for your new bread, Kanmuri?"

If Pantasia was going to start selling bread with any of Inui's juices as ingredients, Fuji was going to stop buying bread from them. Forever.

"No," Kanmuri swirled the blue liquid inside its container like a mad scientist. "I was curious about it ever since Sakuno-san mentioned it to me. I plan to analyze it." He lifted the other container holding the Hyper Remix. "And Sakuno-san asked me to help her find an ingredient she could instantly add to improve the taste of this one so she can drink it without passing out."

"Inui-senpai was kind enough to give me those to help me improve my tennis."

Fuji couldn't decide if he was to wonder if Inui was trying to kill their sensei's granddaughter and be concerned about it, or marvel at Sakuno's naiveté.

"I'll get right on it, thank you." Kanmuri was anticipating breaking down the contents of the liquid, curious about the person who made it.

"Ah, Azuma-san?" Fuji's onee-chan was a big fan of this baker. One of his JaPan breads would make a great gift for her this White Day. "Do you have some JaPan #52 today?"

¤¤¤¤¤

"Tadaima!" Yuuta automatically called out as he removed his shoes in the landing.

It was only Tuesday and he didn't normally go home on weekdays, so he didn't really expect a warm welcome. Going home on weekdays were reserved only for special occasions… or if he knew for certain that Sakuno-chan was going to cook them one of his favorite dishes for dinner and his aniki was cruel enough to eat his fill thus leaving no leftovers for Yuuta to have when he came home on the weekend.

Judging from the shoes in the foyer, his aniki was home. There was also an extra pair he recognized that belonged to Sakuno-chan. It was nice to see it there. It made him think of Sukiyaki and his stomach rumbled as he thought of ways to ask or plead his way for the dish tonight. He was even willing to resort to whining, if needed. It was surprising how good a cook she was, despite her apparent fear of sharp objects. Watching Sakuno in the kitchen was a test of nerves because she would shake while chopping; it was a miracle that all her fingers were still intact.

He saw a note pinned to the refrigerator door, together with some money for pizza or delivery tonight, the note saying that their dad was taking their mom out for a date. Their onee-chan would probably be home late as well, out with her boyfriend to celebrate.

A quick search of the living room told him that the two were upstairs, most probably in aniki's room, studying. Yuuta was thankful of the Big Brother Program for it diverted some of the 'brother complex' his aniki seemed to have and channeled it into constructive stuff that was less hazardous to his state of mind. Aniki obsessing over his new ward was less stressful for him, but it did give him certain things to be concerned about once in a while.

Like why he was home right now, for one thing. He meant to talk with his aniki tonight about what he heard from Mizuki-senpai yesterday. Even though there was no hint of any romance between his aniki and Sakuno-chan, he just wanted to make sure, just to be safe. He didn't want to ask it over the phone, because he couldn't see his aniki's facial expressions that way, and it also provided him a good excuse to deliver his present.

After going upstairs and changing out of his school uniform, he padded softly towards his aniki's room.

Knocking softly before opening the door, his jaw dropped at the sight that greeted him. The mellow sound of what Yuuta recognized as Eyes Rutherford's latest CD reverberated from the CD player; his aniki was lying down on his bed, shirtless. He was also making weird noises of… pleasure… that seemed to start at his stomach and ended all the way to his throat. Gratified grunts and sighs of contentment escaped his lips, while his eyes were closed in satisfaction.

"A little lower, that's it, right there. Harder, Sakuno-chan." Fuji requested. Clearly, he was enjoying what the sweet, innocent girl was doing to him.

Sakuno-chan was on top of his aniki, pounding him into the mattress.

Literally.

Dainty little feet were walking on top of Fuji Syusuke's back, giving him a massage. Sakuno's weight wasn't a strain on Fuji's back, given their difference in mass and height. In fact, her small stature was a key factor in why the massage was such a success. The room smelled of Chinese medicine, placed on Fuji's back, as lubrication for Sakuno as she eased the tension from Fuji's shoulders and back.

Neither one of them noticed the new visitor, each engrossed in their current positions and tasks. Sakuno was surprisingly coordinated when it came to this, but it just might be because all she had to do was feel through the muscles and coax them into relaxing. She had become very good at balancing on top of someone's back, with her Syusuke-nii as a constant test subject. Her obaa-chan would often complain of back cramps and strained muscles in need of a good massage, so she started to learn.

However, she didn't want to experiment new techniques on her grandmother, due to her old age. Obaa-chan's massages were made using hands only. Syusuke-nii didn't have such concerns, so she was free to experiment. In fact, he was very cooperative and therefore made the perfect test subject.

"What are you doing?" Yuuta regretted asking the question as soon as he said it, for not only was the answer obvious, but it also startled the girl walking on top of his aniki.

"Yuuta-nii!" Sakuno squeaked, staggered, and then promptly lost her balance, flailing her hands in the air as she pitched backwards and sat on top of Fuji - hard. Yuuta rushed forward to catch her, but he was too late.

"Oomph!" Both 'masseuse' and 'client' grunted from the impact.

"Itai."

"Aaaah! Gomen nasai, Syusuke-nii!"

"I think that Yuuta and Sakuno-chan are trying to kill me." Fuji wasn't really hurt, but he played the part of a squished pancake well.

"Daijoubu ka, Sakuno-chan?" Yuuta ignored his aniki, helping the girl back on her feet and off of her human cushion.

Sakuno apologized once again before climbing off of the bed. "I'm alright. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you, Syusuke-nii!" Tears were starting to well in her eyes. Was he hurt? She fell on him pretty hard. Did he pull a muscle? Syusuke-nii wasn't moving… "Gomen nasai!"

Yuuta sighed, irritated. "Stop playing possum, aniki! You're scaring her."

Sakuno held her breath until Fuji moved, expelling it in relief when he did.

Fuji grabbed the shirt that Yuuta tossed at him and put it on. "It'll take more than that to hurt me, Sakuno-chan." His smile was in place. Despite the unexpected interruption, his muscles and joints were still singing praises about Sakuno's magical hands and feet. "I didn't know you were coming home today, Yuuta."

His bottom lip protruded, his expression was guarded. "What, I can't go home to my own house now?"

Fuji's smile never faltered. "I wasn't saying that. You know we always love to have you home. You didn't come home this weekend." He reminded.

"Yeah well, I was busy." Yuuta followed Sakuno with his eyes as the girl put away her various paraphernalia into her bag. "I thought you were supposed to be _tutoring_ her?" He asked suspiciously. If Sakuno's grades fell because she was too busy playing nursemaid to his aniki instead…

"We finished all our homework already," Fuji replied as he took note of the slight pink hue staining his little brother's face. It was worth investigating further. "Haven't we, Sakuno-chan?"

"Hai!"

"See? You don't need to get so worked up. Your aniki's not going to fail any of his classes."

Yuuta chose to ignore that remark. "What time do you have to go home tonight, Sakuno-chan?"

"Until ten if I walk her home." Fuji answered.

"So does that mean you could cook for us tonight?" Yuuta asked hopefully.

"What did you have in mind, Yuuta-nii?"

"Sukiyaki!" Yuuta replied a little too enthusiastically, and then remembered his manners. "Please? But wait, before that, I got you something for White Day!"

"Is it a teddy bear?" Fuji couldn't help but tease.

"No," Yuuta frowned. Did he have to get her a teddy bear for White Day this year? "It's just some sakuramochi." He said as he handed the treats to Sakuno. If somebody had told him that a teddy bear was a prerequisite for White Day…

"Arigatou, Yuuta-nii!" Sakuramochi was one of her favorite treats not only because it's a delicately flavored confection wrapped in salt-preserved sakura leaves with a sweat bean paste center, but also because it's pink.

"Eat it after dinner," Fuji reminded "or you might ruin your appetite."

"Hai!"

"I'll go start dinner now." Sakuno said excitedly. She was familiar with the Fuji kitchen and refrigerator so she didn't need any more prompting.

"We'll be right there," Yuuta said to Sakuno's retreating back as he closed the door to his aniki's room. "I have to talk to aniki for a bit."

Fuji smiled at his brother. "What did you want to talk about?"

Stalling for time, Yuuta padded over to Sakuno's things. "What did you give Sakuno-chan for today?"

"A teddy bear." Fuji answered, wondering over his brother's odd behavior.

"Which one is yours?" All the bears looked the same to him, so he picked one up and held it towards his aniki.

"No, I believe that's Eiji's." Yuuta held up another one. "And that one is Tachibana's. No, that's from Oishi." And another. "Kirihara's." Fuji recognized each and every one of them. "That's Tezuka's."

Yuuta hand stilled. "Is Tezuka okay with this?" He asked carefully.

"He hid it well but I saw right through him. I thought he was going to hurl," Fuji chuckled; he could still remember how sick Tezuka looked while making the bear. He probably wanted to hit two birds with one stone by getting rid of the bear and saying thanks for White Day, thus giving it away to Sakuno today. Tezuka looked like he wanted to forget about the whole incident, judging from the way he avoided Fuji's questions about it. He was more or less 'getting rid of the evidence' by giving the bear away.

"I thought Tezuka was your friend?"

Both brothers looked at each other quizzically.

"He is." Fuji replied.

"So he didn't mind that you gave Sakuno a teddy bear and that you're spending a lot of time with her?"

Fuji didn't miss the caution in Yuuta's voice when he replied. "No."

"Does he know about your massage sessions?"

"Yes." Fuji was starting to get confused. "I'm the test subject for everything that she does, although I don't think she walks on top of her grandmother. Old bones and all that stuff…"

"So Tezuka is okay with it?"

Why did Tezuka have to be okay with how or why he got a massage? "As far as I know, yes." This conversation was turning out to be the weirdest he's had with Yuuta yet. "We don't need to ask permission from Tezuka to get massages." Maybe it was different in St. Rudolph's.

Yuuta sighed. It seemed like his aniki had made up his mind. "Fine. I'll support you in whatever decision you make, but I think this is a bad idea."

For the first time in a long while, Fuji was clueless. "Huh?"

"I know you would have thought this through already, but I really don't know why you're doing this. I can't really blame you, aniki." Yuuta continued, confusing Fuji even more. "Sakuno is a great girl and if I were in your shoes, I'd probably go against my buchou as well."

"Huh?"

"I shouldn't be saying this, although I don't know how it will really affect your team's dynamics, but I hope it doesn't affect your friendship with Tezuka." Tezuka was one of his aniki's longest friends and he didn't want a good friendship ruined because they happened to like the same girl. "I'm sure you can fix it in time." He nodded reassuringly.

"… Huh?"

"But I wonder if who Sakuno-chan has more feelings for, no offense, aniki."

"…?"

"She spends a lot of time with you, but she might spend a lot of time with Tezuka as well."

"……?"

"How do you do it?"

"?"

"Wait… did Sakuno-chan break up with Tezuka already? Or hmmm… Does that even matter to you? Anyway, whatever you have planned, I'll still support you. Even though I think it's not a good thing to steal your friend's girlfriend, especially if he's the captain of your tennis club."

"… What?" Fuji's eyes opened in surprise halfway through Yuuta's speech, confusion mirrored on his blue orbs. "You… wait… what did you say?" Maybe he just misheard his little brother.

¤¤¤¤¤

Sakuno wondered why Syusuke-nii was quietly laughing all the way through dinner. She was concerned about how she cooked it at first, but since Yuuta-nii looked like he wasn't going to keel over from food poisoning or bad taste anytime soon, she ruled out that there was something wrong about the food. It was obvious that he was trying hard to contain it, but he would occasionally laugh out loud, startling her and Yuuta-nii.

She asked about it, but this caused him to laugh even harder. This would then make Yuuta-nii blush an even darker shade of red, so she assumed it had something to do with their talk upstairs. It must have been something embarrassing for the younger Fuji sibling, so she decided to take pity on him and not press it any further.

Yuuta was still wallowing in his embarrassment; his aniki's blatant amusement of it was further adding to his discomfort. It was a good thing that Sakuno-chan didn't demand to know the exact details about it or else he would have died right then and there. How could he have been so gullible as to believe that rumor?

Aniki had set him straight about his misconception. He wasn't dating Sakuno. No one was dating Sakuno-chan, Tezuka included. It seems like the misunderstanding was started by Hyotei's buchou. He didn't know how Mizuki-senpai reached the conclusion that Sakuno was Tezuka's girlfriend, but he was wrong. Yuuta assuming that there was a love-triangle between his aniki, his aniki's ward and his aniki's buchou was wrong as well.

There was no conflict between Seigaku's buchou and Seigaku's tensai, it was all a misunderstanding.

He felt totally duped because he fell for it hook, line and sinker.

He couldn't look at Sakuno-chan in the eye during dinner, so he concentrated on the delicious spread in front of him instead. It didn't help that his aniki's shoulders constantly shook from amusement.

Fuji Syusuke is one sadistic person.

There were enough leftovers left for Yuuta to take to school the next morning, he made sure to put them away in containers safely, warning his aniki not to touch any of it. Fuji merely smiled and declared he was going to walk Sakuno home.

¤¤¤¤¤

"So how did your day go, Sakuno?" Ann was currently lying down on her bed while talking to Sakuno on the phone. She heard from Shinji today that Kirihara visited Sakuno and was curious about it.

"It was very nice, Ann-chan." Sakuno was setting up her newly-acquired teddy bears together with the rest of her furry friends on her bed. They were new recruits to fortify her plushie army.

She told Ann-chan about what happened that day, Ann-chan milking every single detail about every gift Sakuno received so as not to arouse any suspicion because they were on a three-way conference with Tomoka.

Three-way conversations were nuisances, especially if the third person was Osakada, in Ann's opinion, but she couldn't put off her curiosity any longer so she had to bear with it. "Is that it?" She sounded a bit disappointed. She hoped that Echizen-kun had seen it but… "Didn't Echizen-kun give you anything?"

"Ryoma-sama doesn't need to give Sakuno anything because he already saved her from those stupid girls." Tomoka huffed. "That was better than any other gift Sakuno got today!"

Ann rolled her eyes as she grabbed the plushie she got from Momo and cuddled it close to her chest. "Suuure. Whatever you say."

"It's true!" Tomoka insisted. She refused to be deterred that Ryoma-sama didn't give Sakuno anything today. To her knowledge, he didn't give anyone anything today, so that was a good sign. Ryoma-sama was just being himself, he couldn't help it. Or maybe he forgot that today was White Day and he was going to make up for it next time… she hoped.

"Ann-chan," Sakuno interrupted, stepping in before their argument started anew again, "why did Kippei no nii-chan give me his bear? I would have thought he would give it to you instead of me." She was curious. Sure she had a bigger stuffed animal collection than Ann-chan, sure she felt like she was a third Tachibana sibling, but she didn't want to take anything away from Ann-chan. She didn't want to cause any rift between any of her friends.

Ann grinned triumphantly even though the other two girls couldn't see it. "I've been wanting something else for a long time and I managed to guilt him into getting it for me for White Day." A press of the remote to turn up the volume was made. "Can't you hear that?"

The two girls listened carefully to the background music that was coming through their phones louder this time. Sakuno recognized it first. "Eyes Rutherford?"

"Yup!"

"How did you know that, Sakuno?" Tomoka was also a fan, but she didn't realize who it was until Sakuno identified it.

"Syusuke-nii has the same CD and was playing it this afternoon."

"I didn't know Fuji-san was into the same music as we are." Ann said as she let the powerful music wash over her.

"I think he's in it more for the music than for the music than the handsome pianist," Sakuno joked. All three girls were not only huge fans of his music; they were bigger fans of the pianist himself. Eyes Rutherford had the clearest, most beautiful almond-shaped blue eyes you could ever see and his hair was as white as pure-driven snow.

The three girls sighed dreamily as they thought about their idol.

"I can't believe you scored us tickets to his concert."

"Well, **I** technically didn't, it was a gift from Kazu-nii."

"Mou, I don't think I'll be able to go." Tomoka wailed. Why can't baby brothers baby-sit themselves? "It's unfair!"

"Sakuno, maybe you could invite that new textmate of yours." Ann said playfully.

This reminded Tomoka of her earlier irritation, adding to her current frustration of not going to be able to attend Eyes Rutherford's concert. "Sou, sou! ANN!" The veins on her forehead popped as her grip tightened on the phone "That reminds me! **_WHY_** did you give Sakuno's phone number to that jerk?"

Both Ann and Sakuno had to distance their ringing ears away from their phones; Ann was sure that her brother heard Tomoka's shout in the next room.

"What are you wailing about, you banshee!" Ann screamed back.

"Why did you give Kirihara Sakuno's phone number? He's a stranger and you shouldn't give your friend's number to strangers! You don't even know if he's a good person or not!"

"Tomo-chan…" Sakuno thought he was kind…

"What if he's some kind of weirdo psycho stalker who eats babies for lunch!"

"T-Tomo-chan…" And he didn't look like he had babies as appetizers in his lunch menu…

"And I thought you _hated_ him! Now you're suddenly super bestfriends with him! What the heck is wrong with you!"

Sakuno didn't know what else to say except for "Tomo-chan…" hoping that her bestfriend would stop yelling at her other bestfriend. She didn't want her friends to fight… or hate her new friend.

"You just went and gave Sakuno's number to him and now all he does is text her! Day in and day out! He even went to our school, like some sort of obsessed freak! What kind of friend are you!"

"For your information," Ann's voice came out unexpectedly soft and calm, "I know **exactly** who he is." Tomoka had to stop screaming in order to hear the girl's explanation. "I wouldn't trust someone like you, one who has the attention span of a slow-witted gnat and the memory of a bird-brained insect to remember, but let me refresh your memory and remind you that he caused a lot of grief for my family a while back. I may not have recognized him immediately, but neither did you.

If you're so _concerned_ about being a 'good friend' then you should perhaps help your friend to get over a crush that seems hopeless and encourage her to entertain others instead." Ann's knuckles were turning white from her hard grip on the receiver. How dare Tomoka accuse her of being a bad friend?

It was an outrage! And she wasn't done yet. "It will be a cold day in hell before Echizen-kun pays attention to anything aside from tennis. I'm not saying that he's a bad person because he's okay in my book, but if I see someone else with the potential to make my friend **happy**, then I'm going to root for him. THAT is what a good friend is all about. Let me ask you this - did he even bother to give her anything for today?"

The answer was obvious and she didn't wait for any of them to reply, continuing her tirade. "No, of course not. Anything that doesn't concern tennis doesn't concern him, so why should he remember to give Sakuno anything, right?"

Hearing those words come from someone else gave Sakuno a sick feeling in her stomach. It was easier to be in denial if no one pointed out the obvious.

"Echizen-kun is a great person and a great tennis player. It's good for Sakuno to be Echizen-kun's fan, but I think she should look for a different crush. I just don't think that he's the right one for Sakuno.

Sakuno should be enjoying her youth right now, like I am. I see nothing wrong with giving her a textmate who clearly appreciates her for what she is. If you can't understand that then I have nothing else to say to you.

Sakuno," Ann's grip on Momo's teddy bear was making it look like Atobe's before Sakuno fixed it, "I'm going to go to bed now. I'll talk to you later and see you on Friday. Ja!"

Ann then hung up, leaving the two girls to mull over her words.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

**Itai** – painful, "ouch"

**Irasshai**(**mase**) – welcome (in shops)

**Tadaima** – I'm home!

**Sakuramochi** – pink rice cake traditionally eaten on Japanese Girls' Day (March 3) which is also known as the Doll Festival or "Hina-matsuri".

**P.S.**

Drama much? Gah… I don't know why I typed it like that. (sigh) What were you guys thinking when Yuuta first walked in on Sakuno and Fuji? O.o XD I do that, but it reminds me of Lucy in Charlie's Angels, so let me credit that just in case. Eyes Rutherford isn't mine also, I just felt like using him. .. He's a really famous pianist from Spiral.

I stole the Sukiyaki from **Zandrellia**. I still haven't forgotten her spazzing over it weeks ago out of my mind and it stuck when I wrote this chapter. XP (pokes her in the eye) Bwahahaha!

This isn't really a crossover between PoT and Yakitate! Japan or Spiral even though I do plan to have Azuma and the others grace the future chapters (maybe) and perform some tasks for Sakuno. 8) I didn't want to have to invent new characters (and I was too lazy to) so I just borrowed some from YJ. Heh.

Daijoubu da yo, fellow RyoSak fans! I was a bit turned off of the RyoSak fandom for a while but my love for it is back now, so have no fear! 8D

Salamat po ng marami sa lahat ng nag-review ng ganito. Arigato gozaimasu for all your reviews! Natuwa po talaga ako! Astig po kayo lahat! 8D

I'll try to update as soon as I can, but KH2 is going to be released in several days, so I'm going to disappear off the face of the planet when I get it. I would like to apologize in advance. Heh. (sweats)

Thanks for all your reviews! 8D


	8. This is not a date desu

♥ WALO ♥

¤¤¤¤¤

A tall boy with a white towel wrapped around his head was rubbing his right arm as he joined his teammates for some tennis practice that afternoon.

"Is something wrong with your arm, Ishida?" Tachibana Kippei asked his teammate, concerned. He was worried if Tetsu's arm was paining him because of his Hadoukyuu use.

"Nothing's wrong with my arm, Tachibana-san!" Tetsu replied, looking around nervously. Kippei's brows furrowed at his behavior, but he decided to let it go for now.

Kippei continued with his warm-ups as Tetsu joined him, the doubles partners Tatsumori and Kyousuke coming afterwards. Both were also rubbing the patch just below their right elbows. They displayed the same behavior as Tetsu when their captain asked them, looking around nervously, as if watching out for something, before they vehemently assured him that nothing was wrong.

He suspected that they were hiding something from him, and he didn't really like it that they weren't telling him the truth, but he was at a loss at how to get it out of them without resorting to physical force or short of ordering them to tell him because they were so tight-lipped about it. His silent prodding wasn't effective; they were extremely guarded about whatever it was.

There was one moment when Ibu came with Kamio, muttering about the pain in his arm and how he should remember to stay away from girls and their moods, but even Ibu had been tight-lipped when he asked him as well. That confused Kippei even more. Why would Shinji _refuse_ to talk about something? When had he ever refused to talk about anything? He always had problems controlling Shinji and his perchance for speaking his mind, despite the inappropriateness of it.

Practice eventually finished and all his Regulars went home in the speed of light, like kicked puppies with their tails tucked in between their legs. Kippei was left totally bewildered by the whole thing, but endeavored to keep it out of his mind by the time he went home.

Ann was in the kitchen when he got back, and he noticed the sour look on her face. Ever the concerned older brother, he inquired if there was something wrong with her. He was more than a bit startled when Ann snapped back at him.

"What makes you think there's something wrong with me?"

The fierce frown, melded brows and vicious snarl on her lips were telltale giveaways, but he didn't mention it. "I was just asking," was his calm reply, hoping to make a quick exit.

Ann wasn't done with him though. Even though he was older than her, she was a girl and more than a bit spoiled. He could be partially blamed for it, he guessed, but he liked catering to his sister's whims… if she wasn't in a raving mad mood, that is. "All day today everyone's been asking me that and I'm sick and tired of being asked that!" He was taller than his sister by several heads, but he still felt like cowering in fear when she advanced upon him like a fox circling her prey. "Do I look okay to you, huh! DO I!" The veins in her head were visible from the strain of trying to hold her temper in check.

"I wasn't saying anything!" Both of his hands were held up in surrender as he slowly tried to creep out of the room. There were times in a man's life when he realized that the best option was to retreat, and this was definitely one of those times. His live-to-fight-another-day strategy always worked when dealing with his younger sister.

The next day, Kippei went to school rubbing his right arm as well. Nobody pointed it out or asked about it, but he now understood. It was never a good idea to cross a girl with PMS.

¤¤¤¤¤

Tomoka didn't seem to want to discuss her snit with Ann the next day, so Sakuno didn't push it. She was concerned about how her two closest friends were getting along with each other, but she didn't know what to do as of yet. If she talked to Tomo-chan about Ann-chan, she was afraid she might take it the wrong way and think that she was favoring Ann-chan over her. The same dilemma faced her if she did the same to Ann-chan. She didn't want one friend to think that she favored the other; she both cherished them the same.

The extra tickets Sakuno got as gifts from her cousin were supposed to be for Ann and Tomoka, but Tomoka couldn't come. She had babysitting duties. She made Sakuno promise to get a picture and an autograph from Eyes Rutherford though, so Sakuno was determined to get those come wind or high water. Thank Kami for backstage passes or it would've been difficult.

She already decided to give her first extra ticket to Shinji-kun, since he was inadvertently left out of their previous activity, and now Sakuno had _another_ extra ticket.

What should she do with it?

She pondered on who she should give it to.

It was clear that Kippei no nii-chan didn't like Eyes Rutherford's music. It would take an act of God or extreme blackmail from his little sister to force him to go and he wasn't going to have a good time anyway, so why bother forcing him to go?

She figured her Syusuke-nii was probably going to give his extra ticket to one of his siblings and she wondered if they were coming with her and Ann-chan. She found him during lunch and asked him if he wanted the other extra one, for his other sibling, just in case, but he refused, saying that he only needed one.

It would have been easier for her if Syusuke-nii took it. The only thing that he asked her is if they could go together, which she happily said yes to, of course. The more, the merrier was what he said and she agreed.

Tomo-chan was telling her to ask Ryoma-kun, but it'd be a million years before she could do such a thing. She didn't want to take him to a concert because it would look like they were going on a date, even though they weren't, and she definitely didn't want to be the one to ask the boy out on her very first date, even though it wasn't really a date. The boy should be the one to ask her, not the other way around… even on not-dates.

The same also applied if she asked Akaya-kun. They weren't really close, in a Shinji-kun, Tomo-chan or Ann-chan kind of way, and the thought of _asking_ Akaya-kun out to a concert, even if it was with a bunch of other friends, caused her cheeks to heat up for some reason. No, she couldn't ask him. She'd have to think of someone else.

Sakuno pondered this the whole day, causing her to look like she was in very deep thought. It would be a shame to waste the gift.

She was on her way to buy some juice for lunch when she literally bumped into the idea. The collision must have sparked her brain cells into life. "Momo-senpai!" Her eyes shone brilliantly as she looked at the tall sophomore. Ann-chan would definitely like it if Momo-senpai went!

"Ryuzaki, you should watch where you're going." Horio couldn't believe how clumsy the girl was at times.

"Are you alright?" Momo was with the freshmen trio, just minding his business and wishing that the line would go faster because his stomach was starting to eat itself from the inside when she bumped into his back. That was odd… was it just him or did she look really happy to see him?

"Momo-senpai!" Sakuno repeated, too caught up in her idea to notice that all Kachiro, Katsuo, Horio and Momo were looking at her funny. "Can I talk to you for a moment?" Once the idea took root in her mind, she liked it more and more. If she gave the last ticket to Momo-senpai, Tomo-chan wouldn't get mad at her for not asking Ryoma-kun out, and she wouldn't be tempted to give it to anybody else; especially to a certain someone from another school. Added to that, she was sure that Ann-chan would also have a great time if Momo-senpai was there.

Momo's stomach rumbled, reminding him that he was on line for precious nourishment. "Sure. Can we do it while I'm standing in line?" Sakuno nodded, too excited about her genius idea to care about where they were going to talk. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Are you free this Saturday?" She asked.

Horio's ears perked up while Kachiro and Katsuo exchanged glances.

Momo didn't notice the actions of the ichinen trio. Two more students got their food and now he was closer to his goal. "There's no club practice this Saturday," he absent-mindedly replied as he calculated how many burgers he should eat for lunch today. "So I guess the answer is yes, I don't have anything else to do so I'm free."

Sakuno clapped her hands together happily. "Would you like to go to a concert on Saturday?"

"With you?" Horio, ever the gossip, pried.

"Yes," Sakuno answered, not really paying attention to him. She just _had_ to get Momo-senpai to agree. It was for Ann-chan!

"Like on a date?" Horio pressed even further, curious as to why Ryuzaki was asking Momo-chan-senpai out.

"Bwuh?" The word 'date' snapped Momo out of his food-fixation, and he realized just who he was talking to… who had just asked him if he was free this Saturday… and did she say _concert_? Was little Ryuzaki, their coach's granddaughter and (in his mind) unofficially Echizen's, asking _him_ out for a date? … Did she mistake him for Echizen?

At the same time that Momo realized it was actually Ryuzaki who was asking him if he wanted to go to a concert on Saturday, he also caught on to the big ears and eyes that were tuned into their conversation.

Horio looked _very_ interested, and even though his other two companions were trying hard to hide it, they were intently listening as well. A quick look around made Momo breathe a sigh of relief; a certain freshman wasn't there. Realizing that this talk of theirs should be made away from prying ears, he dug through his pocket and handed Kachiro some money. "Get me one orange juice, a soda and burgers with that, will you?"

The boy accepted the cash and nodded, a bit disappointed that Momo-senpai didn't seem to want them to listen in on their plans… not that he was a gossip like Horio, of course. "Hai, Momo-chan-senpai!"

"I'll be right back," He said as he left the line, grabbed Ryuzaki's wrist gently and led her away from the curious boys. "Save me a seat in the cafeteria, I'll be right there okay?" He called over his shoulder, carefully dragging the girl behind him.

Sakuno went dizzy from all the corners that Momo-senpai took, looking at each side and behind him fastidiously. He looked kind of paranoid even, like someone was hunting him or something. They stopped when he found a spot to his liking, behind a tall potted plant, and she got a little concerned. Did Momo-senpai take her to this corner of the school – one which she didn't think she'd been to before – because he didn't want to go? _Oh no!_ She had to convince him to come, no matter what!

"Ryuzaki…" Momo shuddered to think what he could have done to make Ryuzaki ask him out to a concert. He didn't really know the girl that much. To his recollection, they haven't even spent a lot of time together to properly bond. He was well-liked by a lot of people in different people, but he didn't want Ryuzaki to _like_ him enough to ask him out on a date. If Echizen found out… "What was it you were asking me about again?" He asked slowly, trying to think of ways on how to let her down gently and save himself from a flogging at the same time. Curse his good looks and charming personality!

"Would you like to go to a concert on Saturday?" Sakuno asked hopefully, mentally crossing her fingers together. _Please, please say yes, Momo-senpai!_

"Errr…" Momo couldn't directly say no to those big, pleading puppy dog eyes of hers. "Wouldn't you rather ask, um, someone else?" _Like Echizen…_

Sakuno shook her head, making her braids swing behind her. Why didn't Momo-senpai want to go? "But it'd be fun if you went, Momo-senpai!"

Momo grimaced. He had no experience in turning down girls who asked him for dates because… well… honestly, he's never been asked on a date like this before. Ann-chan sort of just made him do whatever she wanted to do when she claimed that they were going on a date, but he really didn't consider those real dates… and they were with others… and well… that was with Ann-chan… "But you _really_ should go ask someone else. Really," he said slowly.

Why was he making this so difficult? "Tomo-chan can't go and we have one more extra ticket."

"We?" Momo's brows furrowed.

"Ann-chan, Shinji-kun and I." Sakuno replied. Then remembered to add "… With Syusuke-nii and one other." She wasn't sure who his guest would be.

In the midst of visions of Echizen making him eat tennis balls for breakfast if he found out about this conversation, something clicked in the Momo's mind. "So this isn't a date?" He sighed in relief when Sakuno looked puzzled at his question. He wasn't going to end up with a black eye like Horio after all! And then something she said caught his attention. "Ann as in Tachibana's little sister?"

Sakuno nodded, puppy dog eyes in place. "Would you like to go, Momo-senpai? Ann-chan would like it if you came."

A concert and a chance to be with Ann-chan. Momo's blood rushed to his face. "But it's not going to be like a d-date or something like that, right?" If they were going with other people and Ann-chan wasn't the one who asked him, then he wasn't going on a date with Ann, right?

Sakuno's dormant sneaky side rose to the surface. She was surprised it was even there. "Of course not, Momo-senpai." Anyone would believe an angelic face like that. And she was doing all this for the good of her dear friend! "We're going with lots of other people so it's not really an official date." A little voice sniggered inside her head. It was a group date, or you can see it as her and the others being Ann-chan and Momo-senpai's chaperones, but he didn't need to know that.

"I-" a chance to be with Ann… Can you say _lucky_? "I guess I could go then…" Momo considered after half a second, still red in the face. Will Ann see it as a date?

"Yay!" Sakuno clapped her hands together in glee, not giving Momo a chance to change his mind and happy that she solved her ticket problem. "It's this Saturday and we're meeting each other in the entrance at around six thirty." She pulled the ticket out of her pocket and handed it over to him.

"Thanks." Momo nodded absentmindedly as he stared at the space somewhere above Ryuzaki's head and they parted ways, not really sure if that all happened. If it had been anybody else but Ryuzaki, he would suspect that they were trying to match-make him with the girl from Fudomine. But it was shy little Ryuzaki! Was she even capable of thinking devious thoughts? Because she certainly didn't look like it. Shaking the suspicious thoughts from his mind, he pocketed the ticket and went to the cafeteria in search for Kachiro and his food. The freshmen trio were already there, sitting with Echizen. "Yo!" He greeted and took a seat.

Echizen returned his greeting with a nod while Kachiro pushed Momo's food towards him.

"There you go, Momo-senpai."

"Thanks, Kachiro!" Momo happily dug into his food. He was starting to get excited about spending some time with Ann-chan in a non-date and it was fueling his appetite.

"So how did it go, Momo-chan-senpai?" Horio inquired, watching his senpai carefully and keeping Echizen within his line of sight at the same time.

Something resembling 'It went fine' escaped Momo's lips in between burger bites.

"Did you accept?"

Kachiro and Katsuo exchanged glances. They knew it was odd how Horio refrained from mentioning what they witnessed to Echizen when they joined him at the table for lunch, but now they had an idea as to why Horio put it off.

Momo shrugged, still eating, and then nodded absentmindedly. What should he wear on Saturday? Will Ann notice if he wore cologne, he wondered. Kamio wasn't going to be there, was he? Ryuzaki didn't mention Kamio so he must not be going. Oh god, he hoped not. He just wanted a night of leisure. Kamio was cool, but they argued a lot. Thrice as much if they were around Ann. Wait, what concert was it anyway? He never thought to ask. His mind sort of just blanked out at the mention of Ann's name.

"So you're going on a date with – OW!" The boy crouched low as he rubbed his leg, his eyes – one of them with a black circle surrounding it - widened into saucers. "You kicked me!" His voice was full of disbelief.

Kachiro met his friend's incredulity with a rare hard glare, silently telling him to keep quiet about what they witnessed earlier. He didn't want his Momo-senpai to end up with a black eye like him.

Horio didn't take the hint. "As I was saying," he glared right back at Kachiro "before I was so _rudely_ interrupted, Momo-senpai, does that mean that you're going on a date with – ITAI YO!" This time, the boy jumped as the table did, his pain doubling from getting kicked on the same spot _twice _and hitting his knee on the table at the same time. It was difficult to intimidate a person with a menacing glare if you had tears in your eyes, so Horio settled for a whine. "Why did you do that?"

Katsuo was the culprit this time. His foot just automatically pitched forward to hit him when Horio was about to spill Momo-chan-senpai's secret. If Momo-senpai and Ryuzaki were dating, it wasn't their place to tell Ryoma-kun. In his opinion, Horio should shut up before he got matching black eyes to match the bruises on his shin. "Ixnay on the ateday, Horio-kun." He said with a mild but firm shake of his head.

Have his friends gone mad?

Kachiro was also shaking his head at him and he wasn't exactly excited to get a third kick.

Horio sighed; his friends were such party poopers. Weren't they curious as to how Echizen was going to react if he found out that Ryuzaki asked Momo-senpai for a date? Not looking forward to having a permanent mark of a foot on his shin, Horio kept his mouth shut.

Ryoma didn't notice anything amiss, despite the kicks that Horio received. Sometimes, he wanted to kick the boy as well. Lunch went off without a hitch as classes resumed afterwards.

Horio was in a bad mood all afternoon, but he waited until club practice to get back at his two so-called friends. The front part of his leg still felt raw. He was actually going to share the information he got recently with his friends freely before, but they deserved to be punished after what they did at lunch time.

He waited until it was only the three of them in the club room until he spoke. "Do you think Ryuzaki looks like Ryuzaki-sensei, even just a little bit?" They were early, since it was their duty to set up the nets and gather all the balls and equipment for the senpai-tachi and regulars.

Katsuo shrugged. "Maybe." He didn't really notice these kinds of things, especially about their sensei or their sensei's granddaughter.

Horio was looking at him, expecting an answer so Kachiro shrugged as well. "I… guess."

"And have you ever seen Ryuzaki-sensei with her hair down?"

"Hm…" Kachiro tried to recall of a single time, but couldn't come up with anything. "No."

"Ryuzaki sort of looks like Ryuzaki-sensei, doesn't she?" Horio pressed, forcing them to reevaluate their earlier answers.

"I guess," they both answered, unconvinced and wondering why Horio was asking them this.

"Did you know that Ryuzaki-sensei was a very attractive woman when she was younger?"

"No," Katsuo blanched. He didn't care if Ryuzaki-sensei was a famous supermodel in her younger days; she was his sensei and that was that. The words 'attractive woman' and 'Ryuzaki-sensei' were never to be placed in the same sentence, in his opinion. It was just plain creepy. And whatever Horio was aiming at, he wanted no part of it.

"Aren't you the least bit curious that I have a picture of a young Ryuzaki-sensei?" Why weren't they interested like they should be? This scene played out differently in his mind than it actually was doing right now.

"Not really," the other two freshmen answered.

The door opened just as Horio took out a picture from his bag and waved it in front of the two. "Not even when I have _this_?" A hand grabbed the picture from above in mid-wave. "Hey!"

"What's this nyah? Ooooooh… is this your girlfriend, Horio?" Kikumaru was staring at the attractive woman in the picture. "She looks kind of familiar nyah?" He couldn't recall where he's seen her before. "She's very pretty." This _couldn't_ be Horio's girlfriend. Not only was she way older than the both of them, she also had the face of an angel with the body of a swimsuit model. He had nothing against Horio, but the boy wouldn't be able to get a girl like this with the way he was right now in a mabillion years.

"Anou…" Katsuo looked a little uncomfortable "Eiji-senpai… that's um…"

"That's not my girlfriend, Eiji-senpai!" Horio was appalled at the thought of him dating Ryuzaki-sensei. "But she's pretty, ne?"

"Look at that long, shiny hair!" Kikumaru nodded.

"Pretty eyes."

"And those big—"

"What are you guys talking about?" Oishi was curious about the photograph that Horio and Eiji were fussing over. They were fawning at it so much that they didn't even notice him and Kaidoh come in.

Kikumaru presented the photograph to Oishi. "She's so pretty, nyah?"

Oishi blinked at it. "Uh… yeah." She was very pretty but why did she look so familiar? He couldn't put a finger on it, but… "It kind of looks like…"

"You think she looks familiar too, huh Oishi?"

The fukubuchou squinted more at the pretty face. "Isn't that—"

"What are we looking at?" Fuji asked as he came up behind Oishi and Kikumaru.

"A picture of a pretty lady" Kikumaru held it up to Fuji's level so he could see it, "courtesy of Horio. Doesn't she look familiar?"

Even Kaidoh was curious about it enough to crowd behind his senpai-tachi. "Fsssshuuu… She kind of looks like Ryuzaki… a little…" He didn't like the looks they gave him so he turned away before his teammates could detect the blush on his face. What? He couldn't help it if he could see the similarities between the lady in the picture and the petite freshman. _This_ was just one of the many reasons why he should just keep to himself. People looked at him weird if he attempted to get involved in conversations. It wasn't like he never spoke to anyone or anything, so they really should stop staring at him like he's grown an extra head just by offering his opinion. Thankfully, they returned to looking at the picture and went back to paying no attention to him.

Horio was in total agreement with the Snake expert. He would bet his tennis experience (the whole two years of them) that if Ryuzaki-chan grew up and became even half the lady that her grandmother was in the picture that she would be very attractive. Maybe she wouldn't be so tall, considering how petite she was, but she would still be a total babe, in his humble opinion. Whoever she ended up with should be lucky. And if Echizen didn't realize it within the next few years or so, he might just lose his chance.

"Nyah?" Kikumaru peered closely at the picture. "I think you're right, Kaidoh. If Ryuzaki was older," Ryoma came inside the club room just to hear the end of his sentence "I could see her looking kind of like this. Hmmmm… What do you think, Ochibi?" The photograph made its way in front of the boy.

"I don't know, Kikumaru-senpai." Ryoma said indifferently, minding his own business. Were they tennis players or were they gossip mongrels? What the heck were they talking about now anyway?

"When Ryuzaki grows up, do you think she'll be as pretty as this onee-chan in the picture?" Kikumaru pressed, determined to get an answer from the boy.

Ryoma ignored him, as usual, not falling to any of his baits.

"Are you saying that Sakuno-chan isn't pretty right now, Eiji?" Fuji said with a hint of humor in his voice.

"Ochibi doesn't seem to think so nyah?"

"That's because Echizen can't appreciate anything fine that comes his way if it doesn't involve tennis." Horio huffed, getting into it. Ryoma glared at him.

"What are you doing?" Everyone turned to the voice of their captain who was standing in the doorway, perplexed as to what held the group's curiosity. Why weren't they getting ready for practice?

"We're looking at Horio's girlfriend's picture."

"Ack! She's not my girlfriend, Momo-senpai!" Horio protested, waving his hands agitatedly.

Fuji laughed softly as he picked up his racket. It was fun to torture his teammates once in a while. "Why don't you show Tezuka the picture?"

¤¤¤¤¤

"Remind me **never** to share anything with you guys ever again." Horio collapsed unto the ground as he breathed in precious air like a deprived fish out of water. Kachiro and Katsuo collapsed beside him, too tired to complain.

"Remind **me** to never look at any pictures of your girlfriend that you bring to school, Horio." Kikumaru's stamina was sorely tested when Tezuka ordered them to run thirty laps across the grounds. "Especially if it involves having Tezuka see that it's actually a picture of a young Ryuzaki-sensei. You know how he gets when the sensei is involved! They're like… practically family or something… with the way he acts." Well, Ryuzaki-sensei _was_ like family to them all, but Tezuka must be taking it a step higher since he's the captain… or something like that. He fell into the eldest son role perfectly. A little too much, in Kikumaru's opinion, but hey, he wasn't the buchou so what did he know, right?

Kikumaru shuddered and made a mental note _never ever_ to comment on how attractive someone's picture was unless he knew for certain who they were. Just thinking about how he found Ryuzaki-sensei pretty sent chills down his spine.

Feeling the need to impart some senpai advice based on his observations, Inui had some words to share, too. "Neither should you speculate on how desirable Ryuzaki-chan will be in the future if she were to follow in her grandmother's footsteps if Tezuka is around." Nimble fingers straightened the crooked glasses on the bridge of his nose as he consulted his trusty notebook. "There's a ninety-two percent chance that you will feel Fuji's wrath if you say anything remotely inappropriate about the girl, but the chances of Tezuka making you run laps on top of that is a sure one hundred and twenty percent."

"One hundred _and_ twenty percent?" Kikumaru shot him a speculative look, thinking that maybe those thirty laps did damage to his brain. "That data makes no sense."

"Neither does Tezuka being reduced to acting like Oishi when it comes to Ryuzaki –" He paused. " … Ryuzakis." Inui argued.

"He doesn't really act like Oishi, Inui!" Kikumaru doubted his own words. "… Does he?"

"Not by Oishi standards but by Tezuka standards he does." Their buchou was not only a great tennis player, but he was a master in masking his emotions as well. The word 'caring' didn't normally mix with 'for a little girl' or 'her grandma' in his vocabulary. Not until you throw in 'Ryuzaki', that is. That word changed the dynamics of their reserved captain.

"Hmmmm…" Kikumaru was now nodding thoughtfully tapping his chin, seeing Inui's point. "He isn't as emotionally constipated, now that I think about it. He doesn't fuss like Oishi-mama, but then who does, nyah?"

"You know, it's rude to talk about people especially if they're right in front of you," Oishi frowned at their conversation. "And I don't fuss!" A sliver of doubt crossed his face. "I just care a lot, that's all!"

No one offered to assure him that he wasn't fussy but everyone shuddered as one. "How should I know Fuji-senpai was going to sell us out to –"

"Hush, Fuji's coming!" Oishi silenced Horio, giving the approaching Fuji a hesitant smile.

"Up for another ten laps, gentlemen?" Seigaku's sadistic tensai teased his teammates.

"NO!" The group shouted as one.

Ryoma couldn't help but shake his head and think that his senpais needed new hobbies to occupy themselves with other than thinking up ways to afflict suffering, spy or pry into others' business.

¤¤¤¤¤

The next few days leading up to the weekend were pretty much routine for Sakuno. Tuesday and Thursday were spent with Fuji and Friday was spent with Shinji. Saturday came too soon and although she felt bad for Tomo-chan not being able to come, she was excited to see her idol at the same time.

Since the concert was going to be held at night, Sakuno ditched her usual pink attire and settled for a darker shade of purple this time. It wouldn't hurt to look her best, especially if she was going backstage and "take lots of pictures".

Fuji and his companion picked her up early to meet up with the rest of their group and he teased her mercilessly about dressing up, insinuating that she had a date. She protested, of course, and she didn't dress up to impress anyone in particular at all. Her simple dress just looked dressier than it usually did because of the night sky.

They had no problem spotting Ann amongst the crowd when they reached the concert venue. "Wow Sakuno, you're right on time!" She was standing with a red-faced Momo as she waved her friends over.

"Syusuke-nii picked me up to make sure I got here on time." Sakuno explained to her friend. She was surprised to see the buchou with him instead of Yuuta-nii but didn't make any mention of it to the tensai.

Momo expected Fuji-senpai to be there, but not Tezuka-buchou. The guy didn't seem to have been forced into coming though. His respectful "Buchou!" was returned with a friendly nod. Momo wondered if he should take make small talk, but he didn't know what to say aside from anything tennis-related.

Fuji suggested they take their seats so they wouldn't have to rush with the crowd later on. Everyone agreed so they made their way towards the front row, where their seats indicated on their tickets were. As they were about to take their seats, someone called out from behind.

"Tezuka?"

All eyes turned to the sound of the voice and were met by a smirking face of Atobe. None of them were surprised to see his shadow Kabaji with him. "What a surprise to see you here." There was a chorus 'Atobes' and a single 'Atobe-san' from Sakuno as the guy made his way to them. "Taking your girlfriend out for a date, I see." Atobe said as he saw Tezuka's little girlfriend in the group. Aw, how cute.

Sakuno was embarrassed. Did he _still_ believe her to be the buchou's girlfriend? "Anou… ummmm… Atobe-san…"

"It looks like we're sitting on the same row," Atobe continued, cutting off Sakuno's attempt to correct him.

Ann rolled her eyes at the peacock. "You're just going to waste your breath explaining the truth to him. Maybe if we knock him over with a mallet on the head…" She whispered at Sakuno who laughed nervously. Sakuno wasn't sure if her friend was serious about it or not.

"Maybe he can't handle the truth." Momo quipped.

"Why does Atobe think that you're Tezuka-san's girlfriend?" Shinji took his seat beside Sakuno. Ann was on Sakuno's other side and Momo sat beside her. Fuji was sitting next to Shinji, ignoring the frigid glares that Tezuka were shooting his way because he got stuck with sitting next to Atobe. Kabaji took Atobe's other side.

"That's because he's retarded," Ann replied easily, causing Momo to laugh.

Atobe didn't mind sitting next to Tezuka, but he wondered why his girlfriend wasn't with him. "Shouldn't you be sitting beside your girlfriend?"

Tezuka didn't respond to his question, but Fuji did. "Their love is so strong that they don't need to sit together to watch a concert." If Tezuka had heat vision, Fuji would have been incinerated in a heartbeat. "Sakuno-chan," he waved in exaggeration to the girl who was sitting only a seat from him "you want to exchange seats with me? I don't want Tezuka to feel lonely." Good thing Tezuka couldn't order him to run laps after school hours.

"Uh…" Sakuno smiled painfully at his warped sense of humor. "I'm alright, sitting here, Syusuke-nii." Her grip on her armrest tightened; they'd have to use crowbars to pry her hands loose. She didn't dislike Atobe-san; she didn't dislike him the slightest bit at all. She just liked her seating arrangement more than she didn't dislike him, that's all.

"Should we get some snacks and drinks right now or just wait until the break to get them?"

Atobe shot a distasteful look at Momo. "This is a _concert_, not some movie, you idiot."

Ann patted Momo's hand. "We can get something to eat during the break. We could even invite him and then slip some laxatives into his drink if you want."

Huffing at the way the commoners talked about him, Atobe turned his full attention to the people sitting closest to him. There were still several minutes left before the concert was going to start and he wanted to make small talk. Maybe even flaunt his superiority over Tezuka a little.

Tezuka was gritting his teeth all the while Atobe was conversing with him. His replies were curt and precise. Fuji divided his attention between two conversations: one with Atobe and Tezuka; the other with Shinji and Sakuno. Was it fate that led to him having to take Tezuka instead of Yuuta tonight, he wondered. He was certainly looking forward to the rest of the evening.

Several minutes later, the group fell silent as the lights dimmed and a spotlight focused on the middle of the stage. A wispy bishounen with silver, flowing hair sat down in front of the piano, his crystal blue eyes filled with intensity. As his fingers made contact with his instrument, he wove a tale of pure musical masterpiece, enrapturing the audience.

The girls were listening intensely to the music, as was Fuji. Shinji was also captivated by the moving performance, but his sharp eyes didn't fail to notice how Momo would sneak a glance at Ann once in a while or how Atobe would crane his neck a bit to sneak a glance towards his direction, eyes full of curiosity. This would then cause Tezuka, who sat next to him, to shift uncomfortably, probably thinking that the guy was looking at him instead of someone beside Shinji.

_How interesting, _Shinji couldn't help but think as he let the music wash over him.

After the concert ended, the group, together with Atobe and Kabaji, made their way towards the backstage. Atobe's perfect eyesight spotted a familiar cap-wearing tall head in the crowd and he called out, attracting the boy's attention. The boy and his shorter companion made their way to the group, and the others could almost feel the competitiveness in the air crackling.

"Atobe," Sanada Genichiro, vice-captain of the Rikkaidai Tennis Team acknowledged. It wasn't the first time that they've seen each other in a musical event since they've been to one other before. Their tastes in music seemed to be the same, surprisingly. What he didn't expect was to see Tezuka here with him. He greeted the people from Seigaku and the other two from Fudomine politely, pinning a hard stare at his rival. "I didn't know you liked this kind of music, Tezuka."

Tezuka half shrugged. He didn't feel the need to share his taste in music, nor did he feel the need to divulge that he wouldn't be in this concert if it wasn't for Fuji's ticket which was from Sakuno, who got it from her cousin as a gift. He was a silent Eyes Rutherford fan, and he preferred to keep it that way.

"He's accompanying his girlfriend and her friends out." Atobe offered to explain, enjoying the fact that he knew more about _his_ rival (not Sanada's) more than Sanada did.

No one made to correct Atobe on his misassumption since he was a hopeless case. Even Sakuno didn't get as red in the face as she usually did anymore. She was kind of used to it after sitting through the whole concert with Atobe-san's eagle eyes trained on her and after his comments during the break.

"Girlfriend?" Sanada's brow rose in question, sneaking a quick look at the girls with them. There were only two females and he wondered which one was Tezuka's girlfriend. His tennis rival had a _girlfriend_? How come he didn't know that? His kouhai, whom their buchou gently forced to come with him to the event (in an effort to help explore his gentler side, since it did wonders for his tennis), made choking noises beside him.

"And you look familiar," Atobe addressed Sanada's companion off-handedly, belatedly noticing that he was with the guy. "Doesn't he look familiar, Kabaji?"

"Ossu." Kabaji could recall meeting the boy and actually knew his name, but didn't feel like saying anything else. It was easier to just agree with Atobe.

"My name isn't hard to remember." The boy replied, annoyed. "It's Kirihara Akaya. Ki.ri.ha.ra.A.ka.ya. K-i-r-i-h-a-r-a A-k-a-y-a." He spelled out for Atobe's benefit. "Got it memorized?" His glare was brushed off as if it was nothing, and he guessed his millionth introduction as well. How hard was it to remember his name? What did he have to do to make people keep it in mind – declare himself to be an official rival of Tezuka? Trying to implement his senpai's and buchou's advice, he tightened the reigns on his temper, breathed in and out deeply, then focused on more positive things. "Sakuno-chan!" He nodded to Shinji and Ann as he strolled over to the girl with the braids. He felt better already, getting closer to her. "I didn't know you were coming here tonight!"

Sakuno blushed. "My cousin gave me the ticket…" Was it just a coincidence that she was considering giving the extra ticket to Akaya-kun before she had the brilliant idea of inviting Momo-senpai instead or what? Maybe it was a sign…

He leaned forward, dropping his voice just for her ears to hear. "My buchou ordered me to go with Sanada-senpai and I didn't really want to at first." He didn't even know who the heck the pianist was. "But now I'm glad."

Ann's PMS was over by now, so she was back to her normal friendly self. "Would you like to come with us backstage?"

The others didn't have passes but Atobe was confident that they were going to be allowed in. He claimed he was acquainted with the pianist and no one dared to disagree with him, since it might just be true.

"We see each other in social gatherings," he explained.

Sure enough, all Atobe had to do was introduce himself and they were all ushered in to see the idol. The backstage passes that Kazuma got for his cousin weren't even checked. The girls tried to be discreet as they fixed stray hairs out or tried to straighten rumpled clothing. Sakuno and Ann weren't the only ones who brought their cameras with them, Fuji did as well, but only Sakuno had an Eyes Rutherford Calendar with her. She was to have it signed personally for her dear friend, under strict orders from Tomoka, and she was to take lots and lots of pictures of him. She felt like a total fangirl. Embarrassing was an understatement, but she had to do it for Tomo-chan, who wasn't able to come tonight.

Akaya was eyeing the calendar distastefully. It was bad enough that the guy was talented (it was a miracle that he didn't fall asleep during the concert) and he looked like a girl (a lot of girls tended to prefer guys who looked effeminate), but it looked like Sakuno was taken with him as well.

Great. Just great.

She wasn't as fidgety in her apparent excitement as the Tachibana girl, but she had the guy's calendar for crying out loud.

No matter how good a tennis player he was, he just wasn't talented in piano or musically gifted, for that matter. He liked to sing karaoke once in a while and was actually quite proud of his singing voice, but he was as much an expert in piano as he was informed in the mating habits of the Beluga Whale. And he knew absolutely nothing about the creatures.

Did she like pianists more than she did tennis players? Is that why she didn't act like a fangirl despite being in the presence of some of the best junior high team captains in Japan? Is that why she seemed so unaffected of Atobe's self-proclaimed greatness? Because she preferred pianists to athletes?

All the thoughts running through his head was making his left brow physically twitch, and he wasn't even aware of it.

Sanada was curious about his kouhai's behavior. Kirihara seemingly forgot all about him when they joined the bigger group. If not for the prompting of Yukimura, he would not have taken the boy here tonight. He could never deny a request from his captain, so he dragged the boy here, much to his protests, and forced him to sit through hours of watching the musical prodigy perform on stage. He didn't fall asleep during the performance, but he looked extremely relieved when it finally ended, jumping out of his seat with more enthusiasm than he showed the entire evening. Clearly, he looked forward to going home and didn't bother to hide his excitement about it.

His enthusiasm level increased drastically when they spotted familiar faces in the crowd. He assumed at first that it was because of the Seigaku captain. The boy was rather competitive, and he took it upon himself to work hard towards defeating the guy that his senpais had their eyes on. He wasn't surprised to find Atobe there too, but he couldn't deny being surprised at finding him together with Tezuka.

He never pegged Tezuka as a guy who already had a girlfriend. Not that he thought Tezuka was gay or anything, the possibility just didn't occur to him before. It was an unexpected development.

He still had no idea which one was the girlfriend. He couldn't decide if it was the girl with the shorter hair or the girl with the braids. The girl with the short hair looked like she was with Momo. The girl with the braids looked a bit plain at first glance, but she looked cuter every time you looked at her. It was like looking at a puppy. A bit on the shy side and she had a habit of stay behind someone, as evident on how she managed to hide behind the other girl, Shinji, Fuji and even Tezuka whenever Atobe talked directly to her.

Atobe looked a bit bothered by that. Maybe, Sanada presumed, because he wasn't used to such reception from the opposite gender. Females tended to flock towards him, shouting his name in adoration or falling in his feet. Usually. The short-haired girl, he remembered as Tachibana's younger sister, looked irritated at him, preferring Momoshiro's company better, but the girl with the braids looked like she was in pain every time Atobe would strike up a conversation with her.

"So you're Azuma's cousin?" Atobe tried once again to talk to Tezuka's girlfriend. Did he have a hair out of place or manage to grow an extra head lately? Why did she look at him unlike any female has ever looked at him (with the exception of Tachibana's little sister) whenever he turned his attention to her? He wasn't going to bite but his neck was sure starting to get a crick from having to have to look passed the wall of Fuji that she was standing behind. How Tezuka managed to go out with a shy little butterfly like her was a mystery.

"Hai." Sakuno replied, unconsciously clutching Fuji's sweater closer. Why was Atobe-san talking to her? Not even buchou's back was big enough to hide her. Syusuke-nii provided good interception though, so here she was right now, attempting to burrow her way into his side. She would seek refuge beside Ann-chan, but she didn't want to interrupt her not-date with Momo-senpai. The two of them looked like they were lost in their own little world whenever they talked to each other, and she didn't want to pop their little love bubble to seek refuge behind her friend.

"Ore-sama has met him several times. He's a great baker." Sakuno smiled in agreement. "Does it run in the family?"

"Oh not at all." Sakuno's eyes widened. "My baking skills could never compare to Kazu-nii's."

"Hm," Atobe was starting to run out of topics to talk about.

"Sakuno-chan is being too humble. Don't you think so, Tezuka?"

"Aa."

"Kazuma-san is a professional baker, but his culinary skills can't compare to Sakuno-chan's."

Atobe quirked a brow at Fuji. "Maybe Ore-sama should have a chance to decide for himself. Wouldn't you agree, Kabaji?"

"Ossu."

"If you went to Seigaku she could probably pack you a bento, but you don't." Fuji looked at Atobe with pity.

"I'm curious as to what Sakuno-chan's bento tastes like." Akaya wondered what cuisines she liked to cook.

"She packs a special bento for me during practice because Kamio sniffs it all in five minutes if Ann-chan hasn't already beaten him to it. Ann-chan can be very possessive when it comes to her bentos. I doubt if Kamio even remembers the meaning of the word friendship when he starts eating them." Shinji frowned in disapproval at his friends' behavior. They acted like starving vultures as soon as the bento boxes were opened, that's why he made it a note to hug his bento close during Fridays. Everyone suffered through a three-hour mumbling from him when they deprived him of more than three bites the first time, so Sakuno packed him a separate special bento each week afterwards, just to be on the safe side.

Now Atobe was more curious than ever. He also didn't want to be the only one who hasn't had a taste of the girl's bento, since it was popular among his rival teams. He doubted if she cooked better than the finest chefs that his money could afford, but he didn't want to be left out of the loop from anything.

"Will you mind if I go to practice with you this Friday?" Akaya's question grabbed Sanada's attention. While it was true that they had a day off this Friday, he didn't know that Akaya was willing to spend it mingling with people from other schools.

"If you want to, you're welcome to come. It's a free country. You might want to ask permission from your captain first though." Shinji replied.

Atobe couldn't help but notice and get annoyed that Tezuka's girlfriend didn't feel the need to hide behind anybody whenever anyone else but him talked to her. Her surprised face was clearly visible without the hindrance of Mt. Fuji. "You won't get in trouble for it, will you?" She snuck a quick glance at Sanada.

"Nah," Akaya grinned. "I'm curious to see how good you are with tennis." And he also wanted to taste her bento.

No one laughed but Sakuno felt very embarrassed. "I-I'm not very good with tennis at all." She would bet that even the roots of her hair were blushing right now. Not even Inui-senpai's juices were helping her tennis skills, but they did taste great, once you added Kanmuri-kun's special ingredient in it.

"Where is this "practice" held at?" Atobe questioned. If they were freely inviting what's his name then they wouldn't mind inviting him too, would they? Shinji gave him the address that he recognized. He'd been there before, he remembered.

A second later, a redheaded guy and a guy with brown hair came in, followed by Eyes Rutherford himself. All thoughts and talk about tennis were forgotten and even Ann broke away from talking to Momo to take pictures and get the idol's autograph.

Sakuno looked ill at ease as she handed him the calendar for him to sign, but she lost some of it as she gave him specific instructions on what to do with it and whom to address it to. Tomo-chan would have her hide if she didn't. Fuji was snapping pictures left and right with both his and Sakuno's camera all the while, in which Sakuno was thankful for. Tomo-chan was going to be one very happy fangirl come Monday.

They even managed to take several group pictures with everyone. The two guys, who they all assumed to be Eyes' friends, were gracious enough to take it for them. They stayed and talked with him for close to an hour before his cellphone rang and he had to go.

No one but Atobe's entourage was there to greet them when they exited the stadium, and once again, his offers to give them rides were denied. He rephrased it to giving them rides up to the station, in which they finally caved and piled into his luxurious limo.

At the train station, Sakuno once again found herself going home with her two senpais. Ann was with Momo and Shinji while Akaya went with Sanada, but not before he arranged some sort of schedule with Shinji.

Tezuka visibly relaxed when they got into the train. Aside from the lone passenger snoozing in the far corner, they were alone. He enjoyed the concert, but sitting next to Atobe was stressful.

Fuji took out his digital camera and looked at his pictures with Sakuno. She praised him on the quality of the shots taken, boosting his pride in his photography hobby. Even Tezuka agreed that they were good shots.

They dropped Sakuno home first and she waved goodbye, wishing them a safe journey home along with several thank yous. After a quick shower, Sakuno changed into her nightclothes and prepared to tuck into bed, smiling at the concert paraphernalia on her desk. She should put them in a memory box. In memory of her first concert.

All in all, it was a tiring day, but she had fun.

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**Disclaimer plus lame excuses: **I said in the first chapter already… that **consider this fic AU** because I haven't seen ALL the episodes when I started this. I still haven't, I stopped before I finished even though the OVAs are out.

If I owned PoT and made any profit from this fic, my AtoSak dream would probably make it to canon. (is still whistling innocently at all the bastos people in the last chapter) Yes, Ate Yumi, I'm looking right at you! Ack! Joudan lang! _(runs and hides)_ XD And stop looking at me like I'm crazy because I dreamt about it yo! XD I have no control over my dreams naman! 8P

ROFL and I finally updated because **Ate Yumi** (ahaha, Atobe!) was threatening me with a spork! Lol no she wasn't, but she was bribing me with chocolates… lol no she wasn't! (cries) She was poking me for an update so I just had to update! XD And I still think someone out there would actually like my AtoSak dream yo! Hmp! 8P (runs)

OMG, it took me longer to write this chapter because of KH2 (and other things too many to list here 8P). After I finished it I started writing, but I just _have to_ level up so I could challenge and hope to win against a certain villain… And I'm not quite there yet… plus I want my Ultima Weapon. Wah! I want my Fenrir, too! (_shakes fist_) "Got it memorized" is blatantly stolen from Axel, of course, because I wub him desu!

I've never claimed and I'm still not going to claim to be an expert in Japanese (or Tagalog) because I'm not, but I do check my dictionaries before I use a word in any fanfic now, just to be sure, so I'm still sticking to "Ossu" instead of "Usu" because of my dictionary. You can even double check it on an online one: http:(slash)(slash)www(dot)freedict(dot)com(slash)onldict(slash)jap(dot)html if you don't trust (and since I can't physically share) my dictionary at home. 8P

And now… I'm obsessed with Ouran. It's eating my brain like KH2 did… or what's left of it. If you haven't seen it yet, you should. It's so awesomely awesome that it made me forget that I had to update this fic. Lol gomen!

Oh and **P.S.**

Thank you so much for all your reviews but please stop giving me puppy dog eyes. They make me feel guilty because I didn't update faster. (hides from all the puppy dog eyes) Kyaa! Oh… and sorry for the long author's note. Heh!


	9. Itadakimasu!

: AU _equals_ Alternate Universe _equals_ Please read the author's notes in the first chapter _equals_ does not necessarily follow canon nyah :

♥ N I N E ♥

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¤ Kyouya is related to Choutarou in my own little world. ¤

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How long ago did he start collecting these?

"_Hey, can I have this?" He asked as he looked at the chibi replica of himself staring back at him from the surface of the yellow tennis ball._

_Sakuno looked surprised. "Sure, but… why?"_

"_Just because… I feel nostalgic." He wanted to say more but he was distracted with so many thoughts running through his head right now. All he could say was "Thank you." Then walked away before she stopped him again, calling out his name._

_It sounded special, when it came from her lips. _

Sometimes, a person's existence is perfection unto itself… or something like that. Wasn't that what the people from Fudomine were mumbling about earlier that day when they observed Seigaku's practice? Tezuka-buchou would probably have said something cooler than what he did, but he wasn't Tezuka Kunimitsu. He was Echizen Ryoma.

That night he placed the nostalgic ball with the other things he 'collected'.

A pink diary; a pink headband; a copy of the candid picture that Shiba-san gave him, the one where Sakuno got accidentally pushed into the picture by a quarreling Momo-senpai and Eiji-senpai just as it was taken; the wrapper from this Valentine's Day's chocolates; a pink handkerchief embroidered with her name; a pink hand towel; and the bear was rather big for the shoebox, so it sat on top of the shoebox on the foot of his bed.

They were all her things. _Hers. _Sometimes, he would find himself lying in bed with his treasure trove.

_Oh god, I've turned into some kind of obsessive stalker!_

He had no explanation why he started collecting these things. It just sort of happened. He saw the pink handkerchief on their game against Rokkaku one day, his eyes drawn to the contrast it made against the lush green grass. He picked it up out of curiosity and found out it was Ryuzaki's due to the name "Sakuno" daintily stitched near the ruffled edges. It found its way to his pocket, his intent was to give it back to the girl after, but he forgot.

The next time he remembered about it was when he found the pink headband near the water faucets. He merely wanted to quench his thirst and there it was, staring right back him as he washed his face. He waited several seconds for the girl to retrieve it, but when she didn't, it too found its way into his backpack, reuniting with its pink sibling at home.

By then he wondered if she embroidered her name on all her pink stuff. The hand towel would surely be a point towards the 'yes' answer.

All of the items eventually found a home in one of his Fuma shoeboxes. Like a super secret collection of some obsessive fan. Not all of them were pink. The picture was given to him by Shiba-san (he didn't ask for it) but it went straight and looked right at home with the other Ryuzaki-things. He remembered the chaos that caused the accidental photograph. Eiji-senpai's flailing, screaming bloody murder at the sushi that Momo-senpai held hostage; setting those two loose would level half of Tokyo in ten minutes.

He really should return her perfectly pink things, one of these days.

_Maybe on Monday…_

¤¤¤¤¤

"Six shades of pink and ten shades of red."

"What was that?" Momo was wringing excess water out of his precious uniform and was too distracted to understand what Echizen was talking about. The heavens decided to open up and dump an entire ocean on unsuspecting people just as he was cheerfully riding his bike to school this morning. He was drenched by the time he entered the school grounds and was forced to change into his sports gear, which were warm and dry. Their outdoor shoes were going to be unmoistened by the time school ended, hopefully.

Sakuno had entered the school grounds in a dash, a pink umbrella over her head. She was mostly dry, being one of the very few who had to foresight to anticipate drizzle. The rain must've made her exceptionally clumsy today because she hit a passing student as she swung around to get rid of the excess water.

It connected with the guy's face with little force, but his reflex reaction was to step back, causing him to stumble backwards and into the path of another student before they both fell into a heap of wet limbs unto the floor. All Sakuno could do was to apologize profusely while helping them both up. The commotion caused quite a stir – with the girl whom the guy had collided with after Sakuno collided with him shrieking and all – thus causing a small foot traffic near the entrance. Everybody wanted to know what it was all about.

Ryoma snapped out of counting how many shades Ryuzaki was capable of blushing, frowning at the reason instead. "Nothing," he answered Momo-senpai, resuming his indifference. It was the hair. If she just cut it off, she'd probably regain her sense of balance. He was sure of it.

Not that he particularly cared or anything like that, of course.

Tearing his eyes away from her direction, he bid farewell to his senpai and trotted off to his classroom.

¤¤¤¤¤

Due to the sheer size of the stacked bentos, the girls were forced to wait until their reinforcements arrived or else they wouldn't be able to go anywhere at all. Sakuno was currently swinging her legs playfully as she sat on top of the bench.

It was perfectly dry, surprisingly. The storm clouds they had this morning were nowhere to be seen and the day had become unexpectedly hot.

Tomoka was gaping at the food. She had seen Sakuno's Friday bento boxes for her Fudomine coach and any member of his team that might be present during their lesson before, but they had all paled compared to this. Sure her usual Friday afternoon treat normally consisted of eight to nine tiers plus the separate two for Ibu-kun (that's why there was always someone who picked her up to help carry the food or Fuji would drop her off if the schedule allowed it), but the bentos sitting next to Sakuno on the bench right now looked enough to throw a feast for the entire Seigaku tennis club three times over. And one had to keep in mind that Momo-senpai had an appetite the size of China.

"What is in there?" Tomoka asked in half-awe.

Sakuno pointed to the first few tiers. "Plain rice, fried rice, assorted onigiri, yakisoba, natto (fermented soybeans), soba and various toppings." She paused then pointed to the next ones "Grilled fish—"

"Is it the one with the tomatoes, onions, garlic and other spices you stuff in it?" Tomoka cut off, her mouth watering at the thought.

"Hai," Sakuno replied then continued to list the contents of her bentos. "Oden, nabe (hot pot), yakitori (grilled chicken pieces on skewers), tonkatsu (deep fried pork cutlets), tempura, curry-flavored potato croquettes, dumplings, curry, takoyaki, chicken and pork adobo, shredded daikon, pork spare ribs, I cut up some oranges and bananas and there's also miso of course – you can never forget that."

"What the heck is an adobo?" Tomoka's stomach growled hungrily. "I think you have enough to feed a small country. What's inside the coolers?" Her brows furrowed. "Why did you cook so many? How long did it take you to cook this?"

Sakuno reddened. "Several hours last night and the kitchen looked like a hurricane hit it really early this morning. You think we have enough?" She chewed her lip nervously, failing to notice that her friend was gaping at her in disbelief. "I got carried away with cooking one thing after another. I don't know how big of an appetite Akaya-kun has, you know? So I doubled the quantity of what I normally make. Then I remembered that I wanted to try out the new recipe, so I made that too… Then I remembered that Momo-senpai has a big appetite also, so I made some more… then and I remembered Atobe-san. What if he decided to drop by and eat as well? Surely he'd bring Kabaji-san with him, and Kabaji-san must have a healthy appetite. Suddenly the doubled quantity didn't seem enough anymore, so I made additional dishes and well…" She smiled, a little embarrassed, "I think I got carried away a bit."

Tomoka looked from the stacked bento boxes that were occupying most of the seat and probably weighed more than the two of them combined to her friend's face. "Ya think?"

"I brought some of Kazu-nii's JaPan, just in case." Sakuno replied nervously. If it wasn't enough or if they didn't like the taste of her food, the JaPan should be more than enough to make up for it. She hoped.

"And that?" Tomoka asked again, pointing to the coolers.

"Pudding and jello fruit cups." Sakuno's grin turned into a frown. "I was going to bake a cake but I didn't have time to do anything else." If she didn't panic at thinking that she didn't have enough, she might have had time to make one. But she had been too tired to start a cake from scratch last night… and she didn't have enough time this morning. Was it going to be enough? She worried for the millionth time that day.

¤¤¤¤¤

"Momo-senpai, you want to go grab a burger with us?" Horio asked as he was lacing up his sneakers. The ichinen trio together with Echizen was going to the local burger joint, for it was Friday and they were hungry.

Momo was hurriedly stuffing his things into his bag, glancing at his watch every so often. "Thanks but I'll pass this time, Horio. Ja, I'll be going now. Have a nice weekend you guys!" Momo was out the door before anyone could reply.

"Well he was in a hurry." Horio huffed as he finished up, waiting for the others. The four of them were the only ones left inside the club house.

"Maybe he has a date." Kachiro joked.

"With who? Ryuzaki again?" Horio said without thinking then slapped a hand against his mouth, shooting a horrified look at Echizen. The remark just slipped out of him, a reflex at Kachiro's joke. He felt the temperature in the club house drop several degrees below zero and he found it difficult to swallow his own saliva. Bad timing, since his throat suddenly decided to dry up. And was that his brain deserting him?

"Again?" The calmness in Ryoma's voice betrayed the swirling emotions that raged within him. First there was confusion. He thought Momo-senpai liked Tachibana Ann? If so, what was he doing dating Ryuzaki? Then there was denial. Momo-senpai couldn't be dating Ryuzaki. Momo-senpai was his friend. His friend wouldn't do that to him. What wouldn't Momo-senpai not do to him you ask? Date Ryuzaki, of course. Why? Just because. He didn't need to spell it out for the likes of Momo-senpai, the person he was probably closest to in the tennis club… or the whole school for that matter. It just was without needing any explanation for it. There was also speculation. Maybe Momo-senpai "went out" with Ryuzaki in a very literal sense – like how Fuji-senpai did - thus Horio's theory of them going out on a 'date' when it really wasn't – so that he could talk to her about the Tachibana girl. The two girls were very close and if Momo-senpai was going to make a move on his feelings, then it would make sense that he would enlist the help of one of her friends.

Yes, that was it. Horio just used the wrong word to describe it, that's all. He ignored the clenching of his gut, especially when Kachiro and Katsuo glared at Horio, and he didn't pay attention to the dread making its way to his chest at Horio's reluctance to further delve into the subject.

He looked like he wasn't even capable of proper speech right now. "Aaaah… ummmm… errr… cough… _cough_, cough… etooo… anou… eeeeehhh…" Horio looked like a cornered mouse.

"What do you mean by 'again'?" Ryoma reminded him.

Kachiro laughed forcibly, scratching the back of his neck. "Aaah… Horio-kun didn't mean anything by it, did you, Horio-kun? He was just ummmm… he just wasn't thinking when he said it, that's all!" Katsuo nodded vigorously in agreement beside him.

"Is that true?" Ryoma was the picture of perfect calmness.

"Aaaaahhhh…. Eeeerrrr…. Iii… oooo…" Horio seemed to have forgotten how to speak, except for the vowels. "Uhhh…" On one hand, he didn't want to receive kicks from his friends again. On the other hand, if he didn't tell Echizen about what he knew now, he might have to face his wrath later on. His black eye just faded like... two seconds ago; he didn't need a new one so soon. Weighing those two on his mind, he blurted out "Momo-senpai and Ryuzaki went to a concert this Saturday!" and quickly braced himself for the backlash.

"What kind of concert?" Ryoma asked, sounding so calm that Horio felt a little silly for even thinking that Echizen would go off on him.

"We don't know," Horio replied, feeling a bit better that he decided to come out with it instead of going with Kachiro and Katsuo's plan of keeping it on the down low. "All we heard was Ryuzaki asking if Momo-senpai was free last Saturday and that she had concert tickets." He disengaged himself from the sitting fetal position his body reflexively crouched into.

"I see."

And there was silence.

The only sound that could be heard inside the club house was uncomfortable shuffling from the uncomfortable ichinen trio and mild breathing. There was an occasional cough or two but the three freshmen didn't want to make any sudden movements just yet.

Like deer caught in the headlights.

An eternity and a day passed before Horio spoke again. "I doubt if Ryuzaki's going on a date with Momo-senpai right now." The least he could do was to make amends for his earlier slip up.

"Why is that?"

"Because Ryuzaki spends her Fridays with Ibu and Tachibana on the public courts." Horio replied cockily, sure of his theory. "We could even follow them to prove it, if you don't believe me." They have, after all, done it lots of times before.

¤¤¤¤¤

Momo hurried over to where the girls promised to meet him, doing a double-take at the amount of bentos he was supposed to help carry. "Did you have to wait long? I'm sorry!" He was a strong, healthy young man but he had a moment of doubt when he got closer. It looked enough to feed an army.

He couldn't recall ever feeling so relieved to see the figures of Ibu and Kamio approaching them not more than five minutes later. "Yo!"

Kamio's face soured. "Yo." He didn't mind coming with Shinji to fetch Sakuno but he didn't expect Momoshiro to be there too. Was he coming with them? Because if he was, they really didn't need any help to carry the – "Holy sh- er… how long did it take you to cook all those!" The visible eye that was unhindered by his hair was comically popping out of its socket. Now he knew why Ibu had insisted he come with him.

"That's exactly what I thought!" Tomoka was in total agreement with his reaction before she barked out "Well don't just stand there, pick something up so we can get going!" She didn't get a chance to come to Friday practices often and the sooner they got started, the better.

There was a moment of Momo butting heads with Kamio as they fought over who was getting what and how many things to carry. Shinji merely identified his special containers and watched their battle indifferently, so Tomoka put a stop to it by dividing the bentos between the three of them equally. The girls helped carry what little was left (which were the thermos containing miso soup) and headed for the usual spot, oblivious to the figures trailing them.

The boys' stomachs were making weird noises by the time they climbed the stairs that lead to the public courts; the trip there was made almost unbearable by the smell coming from the packed lunches that they weren't allowed to eat until they reached their destination.

They found Ann watching Tetsu play a friendly match against a figure wearing a yellow jersey.

"Let's eat!" Momo called out impatiently, without preamble and not even bothering to greet anyone. His poor little stomach can't take much torture anymore. He was ready to start gnawing on his arm any minute now.

"Akaya-kun, you came!" Sakuno's fluttering butterflies were back.

"I wouldn't miss the chance to get Sakuno-chan to feed me." The rascal winked.

Off to one side, unseen and camouflaged by the bushes, three people were trying not to choke on the dark aura that was swirling around them. No ant, caterpillar, spider or any other insect could be found within their immediate radius. It was like how animals tended to run away before an earthquake or natural disasters because they could sense it beforehand. Do instincts tell you to play dead when faced with an angry bear?

"That is possibly the cheesiest excuse for a pick-up line Ore-sama has ever heard." All eyes turned to look at the newcomer.

"Why are **you** here?" Ann asked arms akimbo, voice full of disdain.

Akaya frowned. He didn't think the guy would actually invite himself on _his_ weekend. "Don't you have a tall building to go leap somewhere?"

Atobe ignored the scathing remarks from Tachibana's little sister and that boy whose name he couldn't remember right now. "Ore-sama was invited. **And**," he added, looking down at them, "unlike **some** people, Ore-sama brought cake." A snap of the finger made Kabaji hold up both hands containing expensive-looking packages. The labels were from a famous cake shop.

"Cake!" A nearby bush rustled as the redhead received a sharp elbow to the side. "Ow!"

"Shush! You're going to give away our position!" One of his companions hissed furiously.

"But they have cake!" The boy whined, chewing on his knuckles pitifully as he looked at the cake boxes longingly. "Cake…" He wondered what flavors they were.

"Sssh!" The leader of the pack chastised, quieting the group down. They didn't come all this way to spy on their junior ace, managing to go undetected until cake got added into the mix.

They watched as several of Atobe's staff appeared out of nowhere and started setting up an elegant picnic setting on the nearby grass and took the bentos from the teens. Everyone stood there speechless as the uniformed staff spread out picnic blankets, provided utensils and unpacked the bentos. After they were done, the scene looked straight out of some movie or picnic catalog.

"This isn't how we normally eat our Friday afternoon lunchboxes from Sakuno-chan. We usually practice first, but I'm not going to complain." Shinji plopped down in the middle of the spread, strategically placing himself within reach of everything, while still clutching his personal bentos. He was perfectly capable of unpacking his own food, thanks. The others followed, Atobe huffing about how _he_ was supposed to choose the first seat first and then waited until Sakuno sat down next to Shinji before sitting next to her.

It earned a loud protest from Akaya, but no amount of glaring was going to make the Hyotei captain move, so he sat down beside the pompous peacock, pouting. Kabaji quietly sat down next to him. Ann and Tomoka distinctively complained at Atobe for taking 'their' seats then sat down across of them. Momo quickly took up the available space next to Ann and Kamio, who refused to sit next to Momo, sat next to Tomoka instead.

"We have nothing to drink." Shinji observed just as everyone got comfortable.

"Oh no, I forgot! Gomen, Shinji-kun!" Sakuno prepared to stand up and get some drinks but Atobe's hand gently restrained her. His all-powerful finger snap produced refreshments for everyone within a blink of an eye and then they were ready to eat.

"Itadakimasu!"

"You know, the only thing missing is a kotatsu table (heater table). I feel like I'm at home eating a feast with family." Momo was currently drowning himself in the delicious nabe, ignoring the fact that Kamio kept going for the meat that he was interested in at the same time that he would.

"I don't think he meant that he wanted to have a kotatsu _right now_, Atobe-san." This time, it was Sakuno who placed the restraining hand on the boy from Hyotei.

He was about to snap his finger again in response to what he perceived as Momoshiro's request. She quickly withdrew it and apologized for her forwardness, but he didn't mind her familiarity at all. Nobody dared to do that upon his person before. It wasn't an unpleasant experience.

"Why does he have a separate bento?"

Shinji shirked away from Atobe's gaze, cuddling the pink hello kitty bento protectively (Sakuno had ran out of bentos to pack it in so she had no choice but to use that one). "Because I'm special and you can't have any."

He could feel his elegant brow twitch at the insolence. "Why would Ore-sama bother to take anything you've already slobbered upon when there's more where that came from?" He turned to the girl beside him. "The food is delicious, by the way." He savored a piece of flavorful tempura in his mouth. It was a rare treat for him to eat commoner food, and these tasted like it could've been cooked by one of his personal chefs. "Simply divine."

"Simply divine." Akaya mimicked in a sing-song voice under his breath, mocking him.

"What was that?"

"I said that this meat is fine." To prove his point, he popped the meat into his mouth and chewed slowly. "You're a great cook, Sakuno-chan!" He gave her a left-handed thumbs up because he was holding his chopsticks in his right hand and smiled as she tried to deny that her food was even remotely edible. "Your humble blushing face is kawaii!"

"I still can't believe you cooked all of this!" Ann was certain there would be enough left for her to bring home for her brother later. And boy, would he be happy or what. She wondered what she could get in exchange for it.

As the meal progressed, the group felt more and more comfortable with each other. Ann was in her own world where only she and the food existed, so she didn't really pay attention to anything going around her. She didn't notice how Kamio had diverted his attention from fighting with Momo and was now talking animatedly with Tomoka beside him. An outsider would think that the two had been close friends all their lives, looking at how they interacted with each other right now.

The others were involved in mini discussions about tennis and other stuff teenagers their age normally talked about.

"Hyotei has leveled up since the last time we played you so watch out."

Momo even engaged Atobe and Akaya in conversation once in a while. "We're taught to never let our guard down so we're ready for anything that you have."

All in all, the food was being put away as fast as several growing boys could. Kabaji was a silent dark horse who didn't say anything, but Sakuno was glad for the enormous portions she thought to make.

"I feel like I'm being watched." Shinji said in between mouthfuls. Not that he really cared, but he thought he should mention it anyway. Whoever they were had been watching the entire meal and as long as they didn't cause him or his friends any harm, he wasn't going to make an issue of it.

"I often feel that way too, Shinji-kun." Some of the bushes to the left tensed at Sakuno's reply. "But I think it's just the product of my overactive imagination." Who would take the time to watch her, after all? Only someone with a lot of time on their hands and nothing to do maybe, but she didn't really lead a very interesting life. She wasn't stalk-worthy, in her opinion.

Atobe noticed the concealed visitors the moment he joined the group, but didn't think it was worth mentioning because he was used to it. It was normal for a flock of girls to follow him around screaming his name in adoration, hiding behind buildings and foliage just for a glimpse of his greatness. He couldn't recall being stalked by people of the same gender before, more so by people he played tennis against, but there was always a first time for everything. If they wished to bask in his fabulous presence, even if it is from behind bushes which only hid them from people who didn't have the gift of insight such as himself, he wasn't going to deny them the privilege.

"It's okay, they're harmless." He smirked at the shinobi-wannabes' responses. Someone should tell them that greenery didn't normally shake and then stiffen up like that. Maybe he should tell them to do something about their hair, too…

"They?" Sakuno's head cocked to one side as she wondered what he was talking about, feeling like she missed out on an important part of the conversation.

Akaya tensed. He looked around when Atobe casually dropped the info on them. He was curious as to what he was talking about and was surprised to find a familiar head of red hair in the bushes. If you weren't looking for anything, you'd miss it for it blended well with the surrounding cluster of leaves. An ordinary person would pass it off as berries.

What the heck? How could he have not noticed it sooner? It was almost time for dessert. At least now he knew that he wasn't losing his mind when he thought he had random sightings of some of his senpais on the train. But why were they here? Wait… were they _spying_ on him? He should've known what that unidentifiable glint was in his senpais' eyes when they asked him about his plans for this weekend. _Kuso!_ Who knew they were _this_ nosy?

There was only one person who could've blabbed about his plans today to the group. He couldn't see if he was with them, but he'd bet the bento he was eating right now that he was there somewhere. He was just very adept at imitating flora – a tree especially – that Akaya couldn't spot him right now. But he was there, somehow, Akaya knew he just was.

"The squirrels!" He suddenly replied. At Sakuno's odd look, he expounded: "The squirrels in this park are harmless."

"How do you know that? I've never seen you come here before." Tetsu commented as he reached for another helping of grilled fish. His stomach had enough room for one more. After that, he was ready for cake.

"Have you ever seen a squirrel attack anyone before?"

Tetsu shrugged.

"Maybe for some cake they would, but as I said before, the squirrels are harmless. What flavors did you bring anyway?" The change of topics was deliberate; timed just right since everyone was finished eating.

"Possibly chocolate and strawberry; Ore-sama only ordered the most expensive ones."

The rustling of the bushes became more pronounced as the people behind it had to physically restrain one of their own from exposing their cover.

"Too bad you can't feed squirrels cake. Is it bad for their health, do you suppose?"

Sakuno could swear she didn't put any drugs into the bentos. Why were Atobe-san and Akaya-kun talking about squirrels? Maybe they liked furry woodland creatures? "We can share some of our cut up fruits if you want." Squirrels ate fruits, right?

"No cake for the squirrels because they've been bad." Akaya was glaring at a bush across from where they were when he said that.

"If the squirrels have been bad then they could have some tree bark instead." Atobe inserted, getting into the swing of things. "No use sharing any of this delicious food with them."

"Especially the cake."

"Oh _definitely_ not the cake." Atobe agreed heartily. Everyone but Shinji and Kabaji were giving the duo odd looks.

Ann exchanged a look with Tomoka. "Have you two finally lost your mind?"

"Us?" Akaya shook his head as he reached for something inside his tennis bag. "Of course not." Atobe smirked as he saw the boy raise his hand and –

_WHOOSH!_

The tennis ball connected with some of the bushes.

"Your aim is really bad." Atobe accepted the balls that Kabaji presented him and aimed.

_CRACK!_

Several twigs snapped.

"I want a turn." Shinji thought what they were doing was kind of fun.

"What are you doing?" Tetsu furrowed his brows at the flora they were assaulting. Who invited these weirdoes here today?

Sakuno watched in confusion as they took turns throwing tennis balls at the bushes. It was a very odd way to pass the time waiting to eat dessert. She hastily opened the cake box closest to her, took out the cake, cut it and passed it around. Maybe it would distract them from attacking the bushes.

It did, thankfully.

"Do you like strawberries?" Akaya asked her. When she nodded, he rolled the strawberry he had on top of his slice unto her plate, not caring that he had his elbow on Atobe's stomach in order for him to reach her.

"A-arigatou." Sakuno's face was as red as the strawberry, she was sure of it. Especially when Atobe dropped his strawberry on her plate, too. "A-anou…!"

"You can have it. Ore-sama doesn't really care for strawberries much."

"Thank you, Atobe-san."

"Would you like to have my strawberry, Ann-chan?" Kamio said, taking a leaf out of the two dorks who were glaring at each other right now.

"That's alright, Kamio-kun." Ann replied. She wasn't as fond of strawberries as Sakuno was. What she wanted was a slice of the chocolate cake after she finished her current one.

"I like strawberries." Shinji remarked. "Why isn't anyone offering to give me their strawberries?" He looked around curiously.

"Ah… you can have mine, Shinji-kun." Sakuno placed one strawberry on his plate, pacifying him. "I feel bad having so many." She smiled, a little embarrassed.

"Thanks." Shinji's lips curled into a serene smile. Sakuno was always seeing to his needs. "After this, we should rest for a bit before we practice. I didn't think Kirihara would actually come but would you like to play, too?"

Akaya shot him a look. "Of course. We can play doubles if you like or I could go first and –"

"Ore-sama would also like to join this game of yours."

Akaya frowned. "Then you can pair up with –"

"- Atobe while Sakuno-chan and I play you." Shinji finished for him.

¤¤¤¤¤

_I'm blue-da-da-dee-dum-da-da-da-da-dee-dum…_

"Moshi-moshi? Ah, Yuuta! … Sakuno-chan? I think she's with Ibu right now, isn't she? You know her schedule just as much as I do. Why are you asking me this right now, we're going to see each other later, aren't we?" He paused with his companion on the side of the sidewalk, looking at the cars that passed by. "……… Mizuki? Who's that? ………… Yeah… … … and… …? Rikkai Dai people are there? In the public courts?" His companion gave him a questioning look. "Why?"

He placed a restraining hand on his companion's arm as the light turned green. Around them, people began crossing the street, mumbling about how inconsiderate teenagers were these days.

Ignoring the inquiring brow raised against him, he dragged his friend to the side, away from the foot traffic. "I'll see you there then." He said as he hung up the phone and then proceeded to share the interesting conversation he just had with his younger brother. "Why don't we drop by that Go Salon another day? What do you say to going to the public courts instead?" He asked, eyes twinkling with interest.

¤¤¤¤¤

By the time the teams were finally established, Sakuno found herself paired up with Shinji. Akaya was complaining loudly about how and why he was stuck with Atobe, echoing what Kamio was feeling. Kamio was openly glaring at Momo who was paired up with Ann against him and Tomoka. Tomoka was too fired up to notice anything else, and Sakuno wasn't the only one who thought of how much she resembled a mini female version of a fired up Kawamura-senpai. Tetsu was content to just lay back and take it easy for once. Kabaji was chilling right beside him.

"Yosh!" Tomoka turned to her designated partner. "Do your best, okay Kamio-kun? Don't worry about anything else right now, just concentrate on pounding Momo-senpai to the ground. I'll deal with Ann."

"It's still twenty years too early before you can beat me in a tennis match, Tomoka!" Ann was pretty confident.

"You won't be so smug when we wipe the floor with you!" Tomoka shot back. "Isn't that right, Kamio-kun?"

Kamio smiled hesitantly, not wanting to contradict either of the girls. He saw Ann-chan on an almost daily basis, but the Tomoka chick was just as scary. Even scarier up close… when you're on the same team… and she expected you to do something for her. He was more than ready to beat Momoshiro not only because they were rivals, but more so because he didn't want to face this girl's wrath if they lost. "A-ah… hai!"

"Kamio-kun, you traitor!"

"Gomen, Ann-chan!"

"Yeah, that's right! You should be sorry alright! Sorry you're going to lose that is!" Momo flashed a feral grin at his opponents in challenge. "Sorry Osakada, but I'm not going to go easy on you just because I'm your senpai."

Tomoka snorted, unabashed. "Bring it on, Momo-senpai."

Sakuno watched as Momo served, starting the game. Ann had more tennis experience than Tomoka, but what the Ryoma Echizen fanclub president lacked in experience, she made up in skill. She had good hand and eye coordination. Tomoka could do things in one session that Sakuno had to practice weeks or possibly even months for. Although, she seriously doubted that it was a question of who was more skilled with regards to this match. The game looked more like a loud verbal contest between the girls as they bragged about how their partners were going to beat each other up.

"They don't really like each other much, do they?" Akaya observed as Tomoka did a little victory dance to taunt Ann when they scored a point. "I half-expect them to breathe fire any minute now while Kamio and Momoshiro duck for cover. I didn't imagine that players who were invited to the All-Japan tennis camp would crumble when faced with two shrieking girls."

"You would too if you were in their shoes." Shinji felt like he should defend his friend somehow, even if he was in total agreement with his statement.

So did Sakuno. "They're not um, _shrieking_, really… they're just _really excited_." It didn't help her case one bit that her two best friends would laugh maniacally whenever they got a point in.

Akaya thought how his ears were taking a beating from the noise level but didn't comment on it. Instead, he turned to Shinji. "Are you sure you don't want to exchange partners with me?"

"No thanks." Shinji merely blinked at Akaya's sigh. "Why don't we let Sakuno-chan serve first?"

No one protested the suggestion, so Sakuno hit the ball as best she could, wondering why they were playing. She was used to teaming up with Ibu-kun or Ann-chan, but this is the first time she's ever played against someone else outside of her small circle of friends. She had nothing to be embarrassed about when it was just her friends she played against, but this was different.

She played Ryoma-kun once, when he went with her to get her racket restrung. She also played lots of other good tennis players like Syusuke-nii, Yuuta-nii and even the buchou from time to time, but that was different. They were familiar with how bad her tennis was and she didn't mind letting her guard down with them to show them just how awful she was at tennis.

This was different. It made her feel guilty that they had to tone down their play a lot so she can participate in it. Surely they had enough good players if they wanted to play doubles without her. Or if they wanted, they could even play singles matches. There were lots of other available courts now that they've expanded it for the public.

This was just bad.

"I should just practice my swings against the wall," she said as Akaya grumbled about how Atobe refused to fetch any of the balls that went way out of bounds. "I told you I'm not very good at this."

"Non-sense!" Akaya said as he came back and softly served the ball. "I think you just need guidance, Sakuno-chan. I can give you tips while we volley."

Sakuno returned it, albeit a little too high.

"Like how you should lower your grip on the racket." Atobe volunteered as he slowly hit the ball back.

Distracted by his advice, Sakuno missed it by a mile but Shinji was there to save it. "Like this?" Her grip on the racket lowered and her hand didn't feel as stiff anymore. "Arigatou, Atobe-san!"

A little annoyed at how Atobe just inserted himself in their conversation like that, Akaya swung his racket a little too hard, forcing Shinji to cover for it once again.

As both teams volleyed back and forth, oblivious to the arguing teams next to them, the boys managed to give Sakuno more advice on her form and her hits which were all greatly appreciated. She felt like she was having three lessons at once and it was thrice the fun.

¤¤¤¤¤

"Will you stop giving me looks like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you're accusing me of doing something that I haven't even done." He smiled piously. "I'm just… curious… and I really haven't done anything."

"Yet."

"You're just sore we didn't get to go to that Go Salon today." As a tensai, he knew things even when they were left unspoken. "It won't go anywhere, you know. And it's owned by his dad, so I'm sure Touya Akira would frequent it often. You'll get another chance to fanboy over him some other time."

The glare would have sent normal people scurrying for cover. "I do **not** 'fanboy' over anyone."

"Sure you don't." His eyes were closed but they need not be opened to show his amusement. He decided a slight change of topic was in order. "I still can't believe you're into Go. Isn't that a game for old people? Should I start calling you jii-chan now?"

"Just because my grandfather got me interested in the game doesn't mean that being old is a requirement for it. It's a thinking game; a game all about strategy. It's harder than chess." He pursed his lips together. "Touya Akira is only a few years older than us. He's not old." And before his friend could come up with a smart-mouthed retort, he added "Sakuno is interested in Go as well. She's also not an old person."

Touya Akira was probably the most well-known professional Go player today, not counting the title holders. And it wasn't just because of the fact that his father was Touya Koyou, a retired pro Go player who once held five titles and is even thought to be _the_ strongest Go player in the present.

"I think Sakuno-chan is more interested in one of the players rather than the game itself." He chuckled. "What was his name again? Shin… Shindou Hikaru, was it?" He wasn't into Go unlike his two friends, but they've talked about it enough for him to know enough. Tezuka's interest in the game was sparked by his grandfather, and when he mentioned it to Sakuno, she took a liking to one of the new pros, fueling her interest in Go even though she didn't play it.

Tezuka's bored look indicated that he didn't really care much for the player. "Touya Akira is the strongest player under eighteen in Japan right now. He even won against Korean and Chinese pros."

Fuji chuckled some more. "I don't really understand any of what you're saying but I told you you're a Touya Akira fanboy." He was saved from whatever Tezuka was going to say when their eyes caught a peculiar sight. Both boys blinked before they looked at each other curiously. "Is that who I think it is?"

Tezuka frowned a little. "What are they doing?"

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¤ "When egos collide!" – Atobe vs. Tamaki. I'd put my bet on Atobe just as long as Kyouya doesn't get involved. ¤

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**Jii-chan** – gramps

**Hieiashke** – lol! bakit masama ang tingin sa yo?

**Disclaimer: **Same old stuff about me not owning any of the characters or making any profit from this fic. I don't own Prince of Tennis, Hikaru no Go or any of the characters. I'm just playing with them.

Summer vacation is here! YAY! (I made it, didn't I? Someone was telling me to update before their summer vacation was over. Gomen! I hope I made it in time. Hehe!) As I was typing this chapter up I kept laughing because I never expected things in some of the previous chapters to coincide with Yakitate's episode 61. I'm watching YJ61 as I'm typing this and I won't spoil it for you but for those of you who are familiar with it, look at chapter 3… XD

The pudding and jello fruit cups were stolen from CCS, Honey-senpai influenced me on the cake. _Honey-senpai wa cake tabete kudasai!_ Errr… you can spot the Hikaru no Go references, I think.

I had to finish this in a hurry because I was away for so long. (weeps) So please don't throw stones at me at how this chapter turned out.

Thank you for everyone who reviewed. You might not realize it and I might forget to tell you or reply personally each time, but I appreciate each little review. Thank you, arigatou gozaimasu at salamat talaga. 8D It helps get me off of procrastinating. XD

Kyaa… and just to clear things up, I have nothing against puppy dog eyes. I'm weak against them thus my asking you not to use them against me. XD

If you're looking for a new series to watch, you could try Blood(plus). It has a Buffy/Blade feel to it (plus a gabillion WOW factors) and it sucked me right in. I can't help but love it with all my heart even though it's made me cry like everybody I love just died. o.o

**(EDIT) **Thank you very much to **noomma** who helped me with the Ibu-Kamio mix up. Mwehe, I always tend to mix those two together when I write. Gomen!


	10. Princess of Tennis? not!

♥ Yay for kalokohan! ♥

added on 6/06/06 – woooo!

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Tactics would make for a nice crossover with Inuyasha. Something that involves Kagome & Shippou with Kantarou & Youko… Time jump using the well… or have Kantarou unseal them somewhere… and don't forget Haruka of course. You can never leave Haruka out of it. 'Cause he's hot.

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_Pop._ "What are they doing now?"

"They're playing two doubles games. Atobe and Kirihara versus the pig-tailed girl and Ibu." He paused for a second. "If I remember correctly, I believe that her name is Ryuzaki…" He trailed off, brows furrowed as he tried hard to remember her first name.

"Does she look familiar to you?" Purple Eyes asked Red Hair.

_Pop._ "Nope, I don't think I've ever seen her before… and I have the memory of a gnat."

"… Sakura?" The frown was visible from under his hat. "No, that's not it." Why couldn't he recall it? It was on the tip of his tongue and if he didn't remember it now, it was going to bother him greatly. "The girl with Momoshiro is Tachibana's little sister and I don't know who the girl doing the victory dance is."

_Pop._ "They still have leftover cake."

Purple Eyes held a certain degree of amusement. "Do you think they'll give you some?"

Someone cleared their throat behind them. "What are you doing?"

If Sanada and Yukimura were surprised to see Fuji and Tezuka standing behind them while they were hiding behind bushes, looking like a bunch of stalkers creeping about, they didn't show it. Bunta might have been startled, but it was hard to tell because of the gum that covered his face when it popped after he whirled around to face them.

"Hi!" Yukimura Seiichi, esteemed captain of the Rikkai Dai Fuzukou tennis team, stood up with as much honor and grace one would expect from someone who got caught hiding behind some bushes. Sanada and Bunta followed, dusting off some dirt from their pants. "I didn't expect to see you here."

"Isn't that supposed to be our line?" Fuji asked in humor. Yuuta's phone call already gave him an idea of why they were here, but he still found the actual visual of it and the look on Tezuka's face upon seeing it for himself funny. Like a Kodak moment. He looked at the bushes to the right side and smiled. "It must be the in thing to do right now." It rustled. "You can come out now; you're clearly visible from here so there's no point in curling into a ball and crowding around Echizen who looks uncomfortable with you being pressed against his side, Horio."

There was a brief moment of hesitation before four more figures trooped out of the foliage.

"I didn't expect to see _you_ here." Tezuka eyed the four freshmen as they stepped out; three of them shifted uncomfortably under their buchou's gaze.

"We were just passing by." Ryoma answered coolly. The other three freshmen looked at him like he'd just grown an extra head.

"While crouching behind bushes?" Fuji didn't look like he believed Ryoma but his smile was still in place, his eyes closed and unreadable. Ryoma could never figure out what this particular senpai was thinking, especially when he had his poker face on, so he stubbornly remained quiet. "Oh look!" Fuji pointed to the direction of the courts. "There's Momo. Is that Kamio he's playing against? They sure are fired up, eh? Why don't we go take a look and say hi for a bit?"

"Isn't that your kouhai, Yukimura?" Tezuka inquired, clearly talking about the boy who looked like he wanted to shove his racket inside Atobe's mouth.

"Ah, so it is."

Caught and with nowhere else to go, the failed wannabe-ninjas followed the duo. Ryoma dragged his feet, while the ichinen trio felt relieved to be around other people again. The more witnesses there were, the less chance that Echizen was going to murder someone, particularly them.

"Sakuno-chan!" Fuji called out and waved just as Sakuno was about to hit the ball that Atobe volleyed.

Distracted, she looked at his direction and waved back, forgetting all about the projectile heading towards her. "Syusuke-nii! What are you doing he—?"

_POK!_

Sakuno's vision did a one-eighty as the ball hit her square on the side of her head. Since she was so petite and so lacked the balance that most people had, she tumbled, then twisted in an attempt to regain it, but toppled over to land on her butt with one leg beneath her and one spread eagle instead.

"Sakuno!" Came from varied directions, accompanied by the sound of several rackets hitting the ground as Akaya, Ann, Shinji, Tomoka, Fuji, Tezuka and even Atobe rushed to her side.

"I'm so sorry!" Atobe forgot all about addressing himself as 'ore-sama' altogether. Never had he felt so horrified up to the extent of uncharacteristically jumping on top of the net to get to the other half of the court. Accidents like this usually never happened to him before. Girls fell over their feet in a swoon whenever they were exposed to him, but that was because they were awed by his awesome prowess, not because he bonked them on the head with a tennis ball. How was he supposed to know that the girl was going to turn at the last possible minute anyway? Tezuka was never going to forgive him if he killed his girlfriend.

"You should've been more careful!" Akaya accused, glaring at Atobe as he too jumped over the net. "Sakuno-chan, are you okay?"

"Are you alright?" Ann knelt on one side as she subtly righted Sakuno's skirt that got bunched a little higher from her fall. "Does it hurt?"

Tomoka glared at her from Sakuno's other side. "Of course it does, you ninny! Let's try hitting _you_ with a tennis ball smack at the side of your head and see if it doesn't hurt!"

"Don't take this out on me, baka! It's _his_ fault!" Ann pointed accusingly at Atobe.

"O-ore-sama is sorry!" He never meant to harm a single hair on Tezuka's girlfriend's head. And if that wasn't bad enough, Tezuka actually saw him do the crime, live!

"It's alright, Atobe-san! I'm not hurt at all." Sakuno laughed at her own clumsiness as she rubbed the ache on the side of her head away. It felt like someone punched her on the side of her head. She didn't want to imagine how it would have felt like if Atobe was playing seriously. "I'm alright you guys." Ann and Tomoka were fussing over her, checking for any visible injuries. Her bottom felt raw from the impact, but she didn't feel the need to share that with everyone right now. She had no one to blame but herself really. And it was kind of funny, actually. She laughed again, probably convincing everyone that she addled her brains in the fall. "Nothing but my pride is injured," she pinked considerably. There were new people with the same uniform as Akaya-kun with her senpais, and if that wasn't bad enough, Ryoma-kun had witnessed her gracelessness too. "I'm sorry for worrying you." Her attempt to prove them that she was perfectly fine was ruined when she attempted to stand up on her own and promptly fell, clutching at Shinji's jersey, since he was nearest, for support. "Itetetetetete…" The leg that she landed on suddenly felt weak and raw; the pain in her ankle was a surprise.

"You're hurt." Ryoma frowned from his position in the circle of people crowding around her.

"Ore-sama is sorry!" Atobe apologized once again.

"It's alright, Atobe-san. It's not your fault." She assured him. Again.

"Yes it is!" Several of them disagreed, eliciting another apology from the flummoxed captain.

Sakuno stepped on her foot a bit more cautiously this time, but also placed more of her weight on the other one just to be safe. "I think I pulled a muscle or something. Ah – Syusuke-nii – what're you- ack! No, wait! Wait!" Her protests were ignored as Fuji swept her into his arms like she weighed nothing.

Tezuka stepped closer, examining her foot. "It doesn't look swollen." Cool fingers prodded carefully. "And it doesn't look like anything's broken but put it on some ice just to be safe." Sakuno shifted in Fuji's arms as Tezuka admonished her gently. "You should not have let your guard down."

"Gomen," she apologized, looking properly chastised. Was this a good time to be thankful that he couldn't order her to do laps around the court as punishment because she wasn't part of his tennis team?

"We have lots of ice in the coolers." Shinji directed them towards their previous picnic setting, perfectly packed leftovers and all. Having Atobe (and his staff) had some merits. Sometimes.

Sakuno's pink, ruffled handkerchief was made into a makeshift compress as Tezuka tied the edges tightly to secure the ice inside, holding it against his kouhai's leg. She felt really bad for Atobe because everyone placed the blame entirely on his shoulders, when it was all her fault. The poor boy sat at one corner of the picnic blanket, Kabaji sitting beside him silently, looking totally miserable. No amount of reassurance from her that she was okay could change his mind about shouldering the blame.

It didn't help that Tomoka and Ann would take turns verbally chastising him, too.

Sakuno felt really bad for him, so after a while, she finally convinced Ann and Tomoka to continue their doubles game, which they reluctantly did; they dragged Momo and Kamio with them, and their ferocious battle for a tennis match ensued. There was no use for them hovering over her like worried mother hens when she was perfectly fine. Tetsu was also dragged to keep score.

She even convinced Akaya and Shinji to continue their match, just the two of them, since Atobe was as much out of commission as she was at the moment. She truly felt bad for him, but she didn't know what else to do to comfort someone who looked like their puppy just died.

However, after the newcomers officially introduced themselves to everyone, he seemed a little less down. He even suggested that they too eat cake, since Horio had made himself right at home and started eating the leftovers.

"Would you like some cake, Syusuke-nii? Mi-" Sakuno caught herself, "-buchou? Atobe-san brought some really delicious cake and we still have a lot left. Ah! Horio-kun don't touch that one, that's Shinji-kun's bento!"

Horio promptly left it alone while nobody noticed as Ryoma openly scowled at her. Why didn't she ask him if _he_ wanted cake? Why did she always seem to prioritize those two?

"I want cake!" Bunta chirped happily. "I've been wanting cake since Atobe got here but Sanada was too – ow!" A sharp elbow to the side shut him up quickly.

"Yes please." Sanada bowed his head, ignoring Bunta's complaints about his rough treatment.

"No thank you, I'll pass." Tezuka replied; he wasn't in the mood for any of Atobe's cake.

"I'll have the cheesecake too, Sakuno-chan." Fuji wasn't as restrained as his friend.

"I can't believe they followed me all the way here." Akaya muttered to himself as he watched his senpais eat cake. They should have just stayed hidden. He was now hitting balls with Ibu since Sakuno was busy feeding the extra visitors and Atobe lost interest in continuing their game after Tezuka appeared. If he was to choose a practice partner, he'd choose Echizen, but the boy was clearly in a bad mood. One would think that the cake did something horribly wrong to him with the way he was glaring at it.

Maybe someone ruined his plans for the weekend, too. Maybe he had plans to spend time with a certain someone and ended up having his senpais tag along and mess it all up. How was he supposed to make his moves without fear of getting ribbed to death by these sadistic bastards later on? Reason number one hundred seventy five why he hated being the youngest person on the team: nobody cared about giving him privacy.

It was bad enough that Atobe decided to invite himself over. In addition to his senpai-tachi and Sakuno's senpai-tachi, there were her classmates plus her friends. He wouldn't be surprised if it rained on top of everything else.

"Would you like me to get you a different slice, Ryoma-kun?" _Badump._ Maybe he didn't like cakes, Sakuno thought as she observed him glaring at his slice for several minutes. _Badump._

"No, this is fine." He replied and began to eat the chocolate cake.

"I think I'll have two of everything!" Bunta had a slice of each cake on his plate. "Wouldn't want to waste anything now, would we?" He smiled at the little girl who managed to lure his kouhai all the way here. She reminded him of a puppy yet to be weaned… or a newborn calf. You know those ones you see on Animal Planet where they're all helpless and can't even walk right yet just right after they're born. Or a teenie little baby doe with braids. He wondered why Akaya seemed interested in her. Maybe Akaya felt drawn to her superb cake-slicing skills?

Sakuno smiled back at Akaya-kun's senpai. She couldn't help but be amused at the joyful twinkle in his eyes whenever he said 'cake'.

Shinji and Akaya soon lost interest in playing half-heartedly so they retired as well, joining the small picnic setting.

_Ano hi boku no kokoro wa oto mo naku kuzure satta… kowarete saken demo keshi sare nai kioku to…_

Sakuno jumped a little as she scrambled for her phone. "Moshi-moshi?" She wanted to walk off to one side, not wanting to be rude to those who were eating, but it was a little difficult, given her position right now. If anyone was interested in the phone call, they didn't show it anyway. "Hai? What! Will he be alright?" She sounded distraught, even though her voice was lowered as she spoke in hushed tones into the mouthpiece. "No, no, that's okay. It's not a bother at all. Arigatou." The conversation lasted for a short while before she hung up the phone.

"Is everything alright?" Fuji asked, concerned. Sakuno nodded her head but she was clearly bothered about something. She was twisting the hem of her skirt, a sure sign that she was upset. Fuji looked at Tezuka, as if telling him it was his turn to ask.

"Sakuno." Tezuka's tone was gentle, but it was also that tone he used when he meant business.

Sakuno sighed, waving her hand in dismissal. "It was just Kanmuri-kun." Shigeru Kanmuri, the baker with the pink hair. "He was calling to tell me that it's okay even if I don't go to Pantasia this Sunday because Kazu-nii's sick. He came down with a high fever this afternoon." She liked her Sunday dates with her cousin, and not just because she really enjoyed experimenting with him in the kitchen; it was mostly because she loved her cousin dearly and liked spending time with him. The thought of him suffering with a high temperature didn't sit well with her. "I should bring obaa-chan and make him some chicken soup tomorrow or something," she thought out loud.

"What about your ankle?" Akaya reminded her.

Sakuno winced. "I forgot about it," she confessed.

"If you really want to go visit him, I could come with you." Tezuka patted her head affectionately, oblivious to the disapproving frown he earned from Echizen. It didn't make any difference to him since his history and the amount of time he spent with Ryuzaki-sensei and Sakuno had practically turned him into an honorary member of their family. "I'm sure he'll like that, but be careful not to put too much pressure on your ankle. It's not swollen but it looks bruised and feels a bit tender. I think it will mend within a day or two but try not to overdo it, just in case."

Horio was in awe at the new side of his buchou that was revealed to him this afternoon. The cabbage between his chopsticks were only inches away from his open mouth as he gawked. Never had he been this up close and personal to an almost-human Tezuka-buchou before. It was like history in the making for him.

"Yeah, so you can quit worrying so much. He's not dying, you know." Fuji joked, attempting to lighten her mood. "And I'm sure he won't like it if he found out that he caused you distress." His tactic was successful, because Sakuno looked up and smiled at him.

As much as Akaya hated to break up the touching scene between the Friendly Seigaku Trio (who was he kidding?), he didn't like feeling left out of the let's-comfort-Sakuno-chan-committee either. "Was that UVERworld on your ringtone?"

Sakuno nodded, pleased that someone actually recognized it. "Yes, how did you know?"

He grinned at her. "Because I have D-technolife as my default ringtone." It was a song from the same band.

And then, much to the amusement of Yukimura, Sanada and Bunta (although you probably couldn't tell because he was too busy ogling the cake) – Akaya, who decided that now was a good time as any other, reached for something inside his bag, leaned forward, and handed it to Sakuno. She blinked at it curiously, rather stupidly, before he took her hand, pried her fingers loose and then curled her fingers back around it.

"Eh?"

"It's uh, I uh, got you something." If he was blushing because of his bold move, touching her hand in front of all those people like that, or because he was embarrassed to be caught giving a girl something, he didn't really know.

The plastic crinkled at her touch. "Arigatou." She had mentioned wanting one of these in one of their many, _many_ exchanges of text messages before but she still felt shy accepting a gift from him. "Is this really mine?"

"Hai!"

"A-are you sure?"

"Of course!" Akaya said as he ignored his senpai's mumbled comment… something about this being a 'love comedy'. Sakuno's blushing face was too cute. "It's like a good luck charm."

"It's a little doggie cellphone strap." Fuji voiced out the obvious.

"Kawaii!" Sakuno tore the plastic open and attached it to her cellphone. It went so well together! "Thank you!"

"Now you have that puppy that you always wanted." Shinji said. He doubted if anybody noticed how stiff Echizen was right now. Even Atobe uncurled from his corner to look at the gift, curious.

"Hontouni arigatou, Akaya-kun!"

The precious moment where it seemed like only the two of them existed as they smiled at each other was broken by a grumpy voice.

"Ryuzaki."

Sakuno tore her eyes away from Akaya. "Hai?"

"Okawari." The young prodigy almost snapped, holding out an empty plate.

It took her almost five seconds to figure out what Ryoma was asking her for. "Ah! Okay, would you like the cheesecake this time?" The boy shrugged, not really having a specific preference. All he knew was that he didn't like how they were looking at each other like that and if he had to eat one more stinking piece of Atobe's cake, so be it.

Yukimura finished his slice long before Bunta did, who came back for third helpings. The girl was like the hostess of the little picnic, he had to hand it to her; if she could keep Kirihara in line without resulting to violence, she must be something. No doubt about it, he was glad that he tagged along on this expedition. A guy deserved to have some fun at the expense of his kouhai once in a while. It looked like Akaya had some competition ahead of him, too. He couldn't figure out what relationship Fuji and Tezuka had with the girl that Akaya seemed interested in, but it was amusing to see Akaya's reactions to their attention towards her. Maybe it could become as fun as the competition they had when they played tennis? No wonder Sanada took the time to tell him about it.

What was also intriguing was the unexpected was Seigaku's youngest member's reaction. To test out a theory, he decided that he should get to know the girl better.

"So am I right in assuming that you're Kirihara's newest textmate?" The seemingly innocent question elicited numerous responses.

Fuji, Tezuka and Ibu looked unaffected. They were either in the know or they didn't care. If he were to place a bet, he would say that they were already informed about it.

The three little freshmen who were hiding from the bushes across of them earlier looked like they just had an enlightenment. Maybe they've been curious as to who their schoolmate was texting and now they had their confirmation?

Akaya managed to squeak out a protest. "Buchou!" And Yukimura then knew that he had hit the mark. So all those times that he was too preoccupied to notice what was going on around him because texting away on that phone of his was so he could send messages to this girl? Like that collision with him and the trash can… or that time with him and the door… or that time with him and Niou's leg that just _happened_ to appear in front of his path to trip him…?

Atobe, fully recovered from his depression, looked a little put out as he joined the inner circle. "Why are you giving Tezuka's girlfriend a gift and texting her?"

"Tezuka's girlfriend?" Bunta choked on the piece of cake that he just swallowed. The little baby doe was Tezuka's girlfriend?

Sanada dutifully pounded on his choking teammate's back as his brows rose above his hairline. He met the girl on a previous occasion before, and she was with Tachibana's little sister, if his memory served him right. He seriously thought for sure that Tezuka's girlfriend would be Tachibana's little sister but he wasn't one to jump to conclusions, so he reserved judgment and even forgot to mention the odd meeting to Yukimura when he recalled the events in the concert when he convinced him to follow Kirihara here today. Tezuka's caring side that surprisingly made its appearance when the girl fell should have confirmed any speculation he might've had earlier, but all the rather curious reactions from his tennis peers and odd behavior from his kouhai placed it on the back burner. Now that Atobe confirmed it for him, he was a little confused.

Why was Kirihara – dare he say it – _courting_ - Tezuka's girlfriend? Akaya either had bigger balls than he credited him for or he was really stupid. She was already taken, wasn't she? And if she was, why was Tezuka allowing Kirihara to get close to his girl or better yet, why was Kirihara still alive? Surely a man like Tezuka wouldn't take competition sniffing around his girl lightly. Were they really an item? Atobe said so himself so it must be true, right? Atobe isn't like what's-his-name-Mizuki from St. Rudolph's so it must be true. Errr.. right?

Yukimura was just as surprised as his fukubuchou, but he didn't show it. Where Sanada's brows rose in question, only a slight wrinkle of confusion was evident in his face; One of the small Seigaku freshmen, the one with the unibrow, voiced out his confusion.

"Ryuzaki is buchou's girlfriend?" Horio laughed a little. "You're _kidding_, right? I can't see Ryuzaki and the buchou together. Er, I mean, I don't mean that because I think you're uncute or anything, Ryuzaki." He tried to recover his mistake when the girl looked a little offended, as if he had just insulted her personally. He didn't mean to hurt her feelings by saying what he did, especially if she really was the buchou's girlfriend. And even if she wasn't, he didn't want to face the wrath of Hurricane Sumire or get beat up by Echizen again… if he ever survived an eruption from Mt. Fuji. "Why just the other day I heard Higurashi and Murata talk about how cute you are and… er… umm…" He trailed off, coughed as the killing intent rose from Echizen… and was that red seeping into Kirihara's eyes? He decided to then shut up, not wanting to dig his grave a little deeper than it already was. "Yeah, never mind."

"She's not Tezuka's girlfriend." Kirihara informed his senpai-tachi.

Ryoma glared at Atobe. "Stupid monkey king."

This didn't really convince Yukimura, so he turned to Fuji and asked. "Is she Tezuka's girlfriend or not?"

"She's Tezuka's girlfriend as much as I'm currently involved in a love triangle with the two of them."

Maybe quoting his little brother had automagical powers because Yuuta was right behind him not a second later. "Baka aniki." The boy shook his head at his aniki's vague comment. It was nice to know that he wasn't the only person his brother liked to tease but giving a reply like that was just going to further confuse the people who wanted straight explanations.

"Ah Yuuta, you finally came!" Fuji smiled benevolently at his brother and spared his brother's companion a curious glance. "You brought a guest, I see."

"You remember Mizuki-senpai, don't you?"

"Who?" Fuji didn't look like he did, which made Mizuki's hackles rise. How dare his eternal rival not remember him?

Mizuki was passing by the public courts earlier this afternoon and saw the little get-together. He called Yuuta to tell him about it and apparently, (he had hoped and was pleased that) Yuuta called Fuji. He had seen everything, from the very beginning. The main reason why he wanted to get closer to where the action was this time was because he didn't want St. Rudolph's to be left out on whatever Seigaku, Fudomine, Hyotei and Rikkai were planning together. He needed an inside man to get invited, and who better to get than Yuuta, who was acquainted with the pigtailed girl and girlfriend of Tezuka?

He was rather curious as to why these people were here together right now. It wasn't just some normal afternoon in the park, he was sure of it.

Yuuta wasn't a snoop by nature, (that was Mizuki-senpai's job), but he wanted to see for himself what his senpai was all excited about… and why people all the way from Rikkai Dai were here. First he was informed that they were building bears together and now they were having tea and cake in the park? Have they gone mad? Is the world coming to an end?

Seeking some answers, he agreed to meet his senpai and joined the group. As they approached, he heard Yukimura asking his aniki if Sakuno was Tezuka's girlfriend or not and he felt annoyed that his aniki had somehow managed to quote his previous misconception, probably to further confuse the curious audience.

"Baka aniki," he repeated again, just in case his brother missed it the first time, then turned to Yukimura. "Sakuno-chan isn't allowed to date anyone until she turns sixteen." In his mind, that piece of information should settle all speculation and confusion or whatever else gossip to rest. Even a monkey would understand the logic behind that, wouldn't it?

"That just means that they're officially 'not dating' so as not to attract the wrath of the girl's family until she comes of age." Atobe shared his conclusion confidently. Both Echizen and Kirihara turned to glare at him some more.

"Yuuta-nii what are you doing here?" Sakuno was glad to see him. His being here meant that he was spending the weekend at home, right? His aniki was going to be happy if it were.

"Ah we were just passing by…" Yuuta wasn't really lying but he still couldn't look her in the eye. His gaze was drawn to the makeshift cold compress held by Tezuka against her leg. "Are you hurt?" He joined them in the picnic blanket to look at her ankle closer. "How did you get this?"

"Atobe did it." Shinji joked.

"O-ore-sama didn't mean to do it and ore-sama already apologized!" Atobe flushed. "Isn't that right, Kabaji?"

Was it just their imagination or did Kabaji really hesitate? Surely he didn't. Kabaji _never_ disagrees, disagreed and never _ever_ will disagree with Atobe… It's just not humanly possible. "Ossu."

Sakuno sweatdropped; just when things get normal again… "It was my fault," she said before everybody could get on the let's-blame-Atobe-for-Sakuno's-clumsiness bandwagon again. "I let my guard down and I think I pulled a muscle but it's going to be fine. Mi-" she caught herself again, "Buchou and everyone's just overreacting with the whole cold compress thing."

"… Let your guard down?" Yuuta blinked owlishly at her. Why did that line sound somewhat familiar?

"Have some cake, Yuuta… and Yuuta's friend." Fuji distracted them, grinning.

Yuuta blinked again, this time at his brother but didn't protest as he accepted the plate. "Cake?" Did he step into the twilight zone? Sakuno cut him a piece and he ate dutifully but he looked rather bewildered. Why were Yukimura, Atobe and Tezuka eating cake together on this cloudy afternoon?

"So what are you doing here, Fuji-kun?"

Mizuki's question was met by the sound of birds chirping overhead and a low rumble of thunder in the distance as Fuji totally ignored him.

Yukimura turned to Tezuka. "Since we're here, would you like to play a friendly match with me?"

Sanada blinked. Why hadn't he thought of that before? "I would also like to request a match with you," he addressed Tezuka.

"Ore-sama would also like to play a match against you, Tezuka."

"I didn't bring my tennis gear." It was a pathetic excuse but he clung to it.

"You can borrow mine if you want." Both Shinji and Sakuno said at the same time.

"Yuuta, you want to play a match with your aniki?"

Yuuta's lips curled in distaste. "No thanks."

"Why don't you have your tennis gear with you?" Ryoma thought it odd that they would come to the public courts without it.

"We were going to a Go Salon before we changed our minds and came here instead." Fuji explained.

"Go Salon?" Horio's unibrow creased. "Isn't Go like Shogi?" He asked, referring to the Japanese version of Chess.

"It's similar to chess and shogi in a way that they are both games involving analytical skill. It's almost like you're playing four games of chess at the same time, but unlike chess, black goes first." Tezuka explained. "It's a territorial game played on a grid of nineteen by nineteen lines and the player with the most territory wins."

"And instead of chess pieces, you use smooth, black and white stones." Sakuno added.

"Ryuzaki you play Go, too?" Horio was surprised that she knew more about the game than he did.

"Me? Ah… no, not really." She pinked. "I just know some of the basics but I'm barely just a beginner."

"She's more interested in one of the professional players than the game."

"Syusuke-nii!" Sakuno gasped. He was never going to let her live that one down, wasn't he?

"But it's true, isn't it, Tezuka? Yuuta would agree with me, too."

"Eh, leave me out of this, aniki." Now everyone was going to be in on the joke and Yuuta found himself not really liking it.

"A professional player?" Horio was lost.

"Shindou Hikaru, the rookie who skipped most of his games in the beginning of the year and is now on a winning streak." Fuji clarified for his benefit. "She saw his picture in the Daily Go newspaper Tezuka brought one time and began rooting for him."

"Do you like him more than you like Eyes Rutherford?" Akaya asked, weighing his competition. A brilliant pianist and a Go player – were they the intellectual, refined types? If so, maybe he should start taking notes from Yanagi-senpai.

"Eyes Rutherford?" Ryoma echoed, confused. This was the first time he's ever heard of the name, and it was also the first time he's ever heard of Ryuzaki liking someone else but him. Their schoolmates often hinted around that she liked him, Echizen Ryoma, and those few but failed attempts at match-making by Kikumaru-senpai coupled with her diary entries led him to believe that she really did fancy him. Him, Echizen Ryoma, and not some other guy. "Who is Eyes Rutherford?"

"Isn't that the name of the pianist whose concert you went to last time?" Sanada nodded at Yukimura's question.

"You watched the same concert that Momo-chan-senpai and Ryuzaki went to?" Horio was too curious for his own good.

"Lots of other people were there." Akaya frowned at what the boy was insinuating. "Momoshiro and Sakuno-chan weren't the only ones who saw it together. We got to go with them backstage also."

Atobe waved it off as nothing important. "Not that it mattered anyway because not even Tezuka minded her getting an autograph from Eyes."

"You were there, too?" Yuuta asked Atobe, a little surprised.

"Of course."

"It's only normal to admire people who are the best in their fields." Sakuno defended herself. Geez! You'd think they considered being a fangirl a crime or something…

"But Touya Akira is a better Go player than Shindou Hikaru." Tezuka said, matter-of-factly, getting back to their previous topic.

"That's just because he's been playing Go longer." Sakuno replied.

"It still doesn't change the fact that he's the better player and therefore 'the best'." Half of the group blinked and missed the ghost of a smirk that crossed Tezuka's features before he quickly masked it.

"Aah!" Fuji exclaimed, cutting in. "Don't start on another discussion on who's the best Go player under eighteen in Japan right now, you two. You're scaring Horio," he joked.

Horio wasn't scared, he was mystified. His tennis experience senses were tingling, telling him that a possible debate was coming. Why did Fuji-senpai stop it?

"But Touya Akira really is—"

"Hai, hai." Fuji picked up a racket and several balls that Shinji and Sakuno had offered to lend them earlier, and gave it to Tezuka. "Here you go. Run along and play tennis for a bit before you give us the whole history of Go." Fuji was probably the only person who could get away with saying that to him.

_But it's pink_, Tezuka thought, wanting to complain but decided it was better not to. He wasn't afraid of pink, and it was a good racket even though he would have preferred to borrow Shinji's racket instead of Sakuno's, if only for the color. Akaya loaned his to Yukimura, who looked a little excited to be playing a match against Tezuka, so the Seigaku captain remained silent and followed him to the courts instead. Sanada went with them to keep score and of course, Atobe followed with his shadow Kabaji because he was eager for a turn himself.

¤ ♪ ¤ ♪ ¤ ♪ ¤ ♪ ¤

For a 'friendly match', they sure were serious about it. Sakuno couldn't help but admire the quiet determination on both captains' faces.

Who knew that Seigaku's buchou could make wielding a pink racket look cool? Certainly not her. She didn't even know her tennis equipment was capable of doing things that Tezuka was doing with it right now.

"30-15 in favor of Tezuka." Sanada said.

"Aaaaah, you cheated!" Tomoka's angry voice interrupted the battle between the captains. "Stop cheating, you cheater!"

"Who are you calling a cheater, you cheater! You're the cheater here, not me!" Ann sounded just as angry and just as loud.

Everyone turned to look at what the two girls were arguing about now. Momo and Kamio were holding a girl each, away from killing each other most probably. Tetsu stood in between them, arms spread to keep the girls apart.

"Ann-chan! Tomo-chan!" Sakuno gasped as they both kicked and flailed to get away from Kamio and Momo's grips.

"I'll show you who's been cheating!"

"Oh yeah? Bring it, fatty!"

"Fatty! Who are you calling fat, ugly!" Sakuno could swear she saw steam rise from Ann's head and exit out of her ears.

"It was out and you know it!"

"Tetsu-kun didn't say it was so it wasn't!"

"Cheater!"

_HISS._ "Stop calling me a cheater, ugly!"

"I'm not ugly! But **you **are fatso!" _RAWR._

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Feeling like an invalid because her self-appointed guardians insisted that she not use her own legs for walking, Sakuno had to mediate from on top of Fuji's back.

She couldn't recall the last time she rode piggyback on anyone, but she found that she didn't dislike it. She rather liked being taller or within eye-level of everyone. She was even taller than Ryoma-kun now, from her position. It sucked being vertically challenged at times.

What started the fight between her two friends was the call that Ann made, proclaiming that Tomoka's ball was out. Tomoka, of course, thought it was in, and their referee wasn't of any help because he had gone to the loo before the incident happened. Bad timing, Tetsu. And even though the rest of them were on the court beside them, nobody was really paying attention to their doubles game because of the superb 'friendly match' between the two imposing captains.

Momo had, predictably, sided with his teammate Ann. Not surprisingly (or maybe it is to some), Kamio had sided with Tomoka. The disagreement between their partners further fueled the girls' disagreement until it escalated into the shouting match.

Even Sakuno couldn't calm the girls down. Could it have been because they were extremely competitive and it was a deciding point? Or it must've been the weather. Maybe dark storm clouds looming in the horizon did weird things to the explosive chemistry between Ann and Tomoka? Sakuno wasn't sure what it was but Tezuka finally put a stop to it when he ordered the boys to take their respective partners home.

Kamio had a momentary memory lapse (didn't he remember that everything Tezuka says is law?) and had the courage to tell him that he didn't know where Tomoka lived, but was quickly silenced with a don't-argue-with-me-or-else look from the Seigaku captain.

Momo had no objections because he knew better than to argue with the guy. He was also beginning to fear for his life. Which was odd. He imagined his reaction to a cat fight to be a little bit different from what he was feeling right now. Did it have something to do with Ann's involvement in it, he wondered. Or was it because he didn't expect that Osakada could be just as scary when the two of them clashed? He never knew his kouhai could be so fearsome.

He shuddered, not really able to decide. Keeping them out of each other's hair was a good idea and soon, he and Kamio went on their separate ways with a girl each; Tetsu going with the Momoshiro-Tachibana pair saying that he had to talk to her brother about something.

He who runs away will live to fight another day… ne?

"I guess that means we should also get going now." Fuji looked up the dark clouds above them.

"You can put her down now, aniki."

"Don't worry, Sakuno-chan doesn't weigh a thing and even if she does break my back because of her weight, she can make it up to me by giving me a massage. Ne, Tezuka?"

Tezuka didn't respond to it but his unofficial spokesman did. "A massage?" Atobe asked.

"Yeah, didn't you know?"

"Aniki…" Yuuta warned, not really sure if it's a good idea to share that little tidbit with everyone here.

"Sakuno-chan gives THE best massages." A look of pure bliss crossed his features. "Ever! I can't begin to describe the wonders that she could do with her hands… but I think I like her feet – mfph!" A small hand covered his mouth from behind.

Yuuta laughed, he couldn't help it. "Way to shut him up, Sakuno-chan!"

Sakuno was blushing wildly for shutting Fuji up that way, but she didn't want him to give Atobe any thoughts on how he was going to sample her massage skills like he did her bento. She didn't know him well enough to give him massages, thank you very much. "I have to get my bentos first."

"The ichinen can do it." Tezuka's words snapped Horio, Katsuo and Kachiro into action.

"Can I walk you home?" Akaya asked, thinking it was the gentlemanly thing to do.

"Aniki and I will see that she gets home safely."

Too bad they were already going home when he hasn't even gathered enough information yet but Mizuki, of course, was going to have to make sure that his kouhai was going to get home safely. "I too will walk Fu- I mean, _the girl_ home."

"I'm the one who normally walks Sakuno home on Fridays." Shinji contributed to their discussion. "Since she's riding Fuji, does that mean that I have to walk him home, too?"

"You don't have to do that, Ibu-san." Fuji was finally allowed to speak when Sakuno took her hands off of his mouth.

"Ore-sama's chauffeur would be happy to take her home."

"Aniki and I will see that she gets home safely." Yuuta reiterated.

"And Tezuka, too." Fuji chirped.

"I think Ryuzaki is capable of going home by herself." Ryoma was disgusted with how they were insisting on walking Ryuzaki home when she was a big girl already.

_Plip._

Yuuta raised his palm and looked above, as a drop of water hit his forehead. "Ame?"

_Plip. Plop._

"It's starting to rain!" Another raindrop stained Yuuta's cheek and soon, more droplets of rain fell as they scrambled to clear away the bentos and took shelter under the only gazebo around.

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Animes I'm currently obsessed with: **Noein** and **Blood**(plus). 'Cause they're _effing_ awesomerific… Noein just a bit more awesomerificer than Blood+. I don't know if it's because I was scared of Blood+ during the first few episodes or not… but it gets fanfreakin' awesome quickly. I also started watching **Saiunkoku Monogatari** and it looks promising. It reminds me of Fushigi Yuugi… only better.

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**Disclaimer:** (Insert all standard disclaimers here) Lyrics for Sakuno's cellphone's ringtone is from "Colors of the Heart" song of UVERworld. 'Friendly Seigaku trio' is a ripoff from Ouran's 'Friendly Classmate Trio'. If you're thinking of Murata Ken (KKM) and Higurashi Souta (IY), you're right; I'm stealing their names because I don't want to make up new (lame) ones. I'm bad at names. But only their names, not the character themselves. Heh.

**Angel** – lol no, I'm afraid Sakuno's not acquainted with Akira or Hikaru. She's just a Shindou fangirl – compared to Tezuka who's a Touya fanboy. _(Gets bricked by Tezuka)_ XD I'm going to try my best to insert some people from Ouran… I just need to set the stage for them first… so they can rendezvous in Noah's Arc and watch something like Twister or Deep Impact no da no da/collaboration letter XD

**Hieiashke** – Opo, gusto ko si Hikaru. 8D At kaya pala! Now that you mentioned it, I can see the resemblance! XD Now I really want to have Akira and Hikaru even for a cameo here. Kyaa! Hmmmm… (ponders)

**Ii data** means **good data**.

**Ii – good**

**Itetetete – owowowowow**; I didn't want to just use "**itai**" or "**ouch**".

**Ame - rain**

**Okawari – **seconds; **second helping**

**A/N:** Thanks again to **noomma** (dog, cat... same difference? XD) because a convo I had with her reminded me of the Kai-Irene piggyback on Blood+. I wanted Sakuno to piggyback on someone too (mostly Tezuka but it somehow ended up different than what I previously imagined… and minus the choking of course) but I couldn't think of any other reason (I fail as a writer) to get her off her feet but that. Gomen, Atobe. (pets Atobe)

Thanks for bearing with it so far. I think I want to do Rokkaku next, but chibi Ryoma and chibi Fuji aren't giving me any inspiration for it yet. They're starving… again… or maybe it's because they've been playing with Jye-sama's puppy Haji… aaah, either way, please feed them or else they'll wither away to nothing. They're partial to pudding and takoyaki, but reviews work, too.

I think I still have a dominant RyoSak shipper in me, but that might change… So yeah… no set pairing for Sakuno yet although MomoxAnn is _almost_ set in stone already.

Thank you to **Ficfan3484** and for all your reviews, minna-san. (insert fireworks here)


	11. Sick Days

♥ because hating Sakuno is like kicking a puppy ♥

06/23/06

**( )( )  
('.')  
(")(")**  
This is Bunny.

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**Dis**©**laimer: **If I ©laimed that I own Prin©e of Tennis, invented awesomerifi© words and all the ©haracters featured here, would anyone believe me? O.o I don't own any of the characters featured here because (I am _so_ unoriginal) I'm too lazy to think up a new, original character that might turn into a Mary Sue or something out of a horror flick. I'm just borrowing and playing with my favorite ones for a bit. Please put up with the plotless-ness of the fic until uh… later. I have everything planned out but my planning leaves room for any pairing for Sakuno. Hehe.

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There was nothing but silence, silence, the sound of falling rain forming small puddles on the ground and more silence.

"They should build bigger gazebos." Akaya muttered under his breath. Beside him, Ryoma silently agreed but remained quiet as he glared at the rain.

It was rather awkward.

With several guys and a girl huddled under it, space was very limited. True, the freshmen occupied less space since they were smaller in stature, but Kabaji alone more than made up for whatever area they saved.

"Horio-kun, please stop stepping on my foot." Kachiro winced, thinking if he should just brave getting soaked through the bone instead of having to put up with Horio's foot on top of his and Katsuo's elbow in his stomach.

"I'm trying but there isn't any more space to move here!" Horio snapped back, shifting and hitting Kabaji in the process. _Gulp._ "G-gomen!"

Kabaji continued to stare ahead, ignoring his apology.

The structure wasn't even big enough to host a table or bench. It was just four solid posts with a roof overhead. The government either skimped on the gazebo when they decided to appropriate the funds into expanding the courts instead or they never thought that it would be used to shelter more than ten well-built teenagers, four freshmen and a little girl all together at the same time.

Not that they thought any of them had cooties or anything… well, except maybe for Horio… but none of them were as touchy-feely as say… Kikumaru Eiji… so having to literally bump elbows with your rivals wasn't exactly their idea of spending their Friday afternoons.

Ryoma could swear he could see the buchou's left brow _twitch_ and could almost see him recoil away whenever Atobe's jersey would so much as _brush_ upon his person.

"I wonder if Ann-chan and Tomo-chan got home safely." The cold weather was making her a little drowsy. She liked to sleep whenever it was cold outside. The sound of the rain pelting the windowpane was very soothing. She quivered a little. Her front was toasty warm from the heat emitted from Fuji's back but her tennis outfit provided little insulation.

"I'm sure Momo and Kamio made sure they got there safely." Fuji turned to the shivering girl on his back. "Are you cold?" She shook her head but he could almost feel her insides shaking from the dropped temperature.

He wasn't the only one who noticed.

Yuuta was taking off his jacket just as Fuji said "Tezuka, lend me your jacket" and "Here you go" came from several people. Several assorted jerseys were presented to him, ripe for picking.

Fuji's smile never faltered. "I didn't know so many people were named Tezuka? Ah-- thank you, Yuuta." His brother pushed his St. Rudolph's jacket a bit roughly on him. Akaya wanted to do the same thing but he had great respect and a certain degree of fear for the tensai so he refrained.

Tezuka looked at him expectantly. It didn't take a genius to figure out what that look meant. _Are you going to take this jacket that you made me take off or not?_

It was a bit of a dilemma.

Yuuta was offering _his_ jacket and blood was thicker than water...

Still… his friend and captain had already taken off his jacket…

And he asked for it in the first place…

If he knew this was going to happen, he would have just kept quiet and given her the jacket of his back.

_Ah, youth._

Nothing surprised him anymore. It must be the power of those long braids. Much like how Samson's source of super strength was his hair, Sakuno's long braids were probably the source of her inherent cuteness that was present in Disney Princesses like Cinderella or Snow White. Furry woodland creatures didn't just come out to play and sing with normal folks, you know. You have to have a certain appeal to attract them to you and if Sakuno was the princess, then these shivering dorks standing under this gazebo were the furry woodland creatures who were drawn to the beacon of cuteness.

Even Eiji with legions of teddy bears paled in comparison.

"What are you waiting for, aniki? Take my jacket already."

Tezuka remained silent but he was clearly not pleased with Fuji's indecision. What exactly did Tezuka expect from him anyway? He's never been in a situation where several jackets were offered to him before. Guys normally went through life without experiencing his dilemma right now.

Oh look, even Echizen was offering his jacket. "Ryuzaki is my size, she can borrow mine." The Hakugei expert mentally flinched at the array of choices.

Fuji saw the logic in that but he didn't want to slight his precious little brother and his friend whom he had demanded a jacket from. Akaya's jacket was not even an option and he could just ignore Echizen. There were only two to choose from.

_Eeny…_

He could risk offending his brother by taking Tezuka's. Yuuta was always indignant towards him anyway.

_Meeny…_

But they were making so much progress lately… Not that his picking Tezuka's jacket over Yuuta's would put a dent in the budding sibling relationship, however… but still… he didn't want to embarrass his precious little brother…

_Miny…_

Will Tezuka make him run laps, he wondered…

Hm.

Having made a decision, he lifted his hand –

And then Kabaji took off his jacket and draped it over the girl.

…

The jacket was big enough to cover both of Fuji and Sakuno, making them look like one person.

A Fuji hunchback.

…

Huh.

…

Did he say that nothing ever surprised him anymore?

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_Dear Diary,_

_In the end - with the exception of Ann-chan, Tomo-chan, Momo-senpai, Kamio-kun and Tetsu-kun who went home ahead of us - everyone ended up 'walking' me home. _

_Fine… so I didn't walk, technically. I just clung to Syusuke-nii's back and then Mitsu-nii's back. I felt like a piece of luggage, but it really felt nice to be not-short, even for a while. Atobe-san had made such a huge fuss about Syusuke-nii carrying me, calling it "indecent", that's why I got transferred to Mitsu-nii's back but it was all good. I wonder if he'll ever realize that I'm not Mitsu-nii's girlfriend. Not even Yuuta-nii could convince him otherwise and by the time we were halfway home, he gave up trying to convince the Hyotei buchou. He's such an odd fellow. Yuuta-nii calls it "selective hearing"._

_My ankle is fine already… Okay, so it's not… I can't do cartwheels and run laps with it yet… not that I ever do but okay… I can't do anything much on my feet YET anyway but it's not even remotely swelling so it wasn't as bad as the others were making it to be. Poor Atobe-san. He got all the blame when it was my fault. _

_Akaya-kun gave me a little doggy cellphone strap today. It's so kawaii! I have to think of something to give him back soon, but I have no idea what to yet. _

_I'm currently missing my pink hello kitty chopsticks that match the bento that I packed Shinji-kun's food in today. I wonder if Horio-kun and the others placed it with that bento box? I'm going to call Shinji-kun tomorrow to ask, since it's already this late. I hope I didn't lose it. Those are my favorite pair._

_I hope it doesn't rain tomorrow. _

_Sakuno_

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The next morning, Sakuno woke up early to call her grandmother and inform her of Kazuma's condition. Ryuzaki Sumire was concerned about her brother's favorite grandson, so she wholeheartedly agreed to the idea of her granddaughter bringing him some chicken soup. She wasn't going to be able to come with Sakuno since she had an important teacher's conference to attend to, but she offered to drop her off at the train station.

Sakuno then stealthily made her way to the kitchen to cook and none of her family had any idea that she was putting most of her weight on her left leg. It wasn't like she was hurt or anything like that; she was just following her _orders_ and making sure that she wasn't going to be scolded for making her healthy and not-hurt ankle swell during the weekend. It wouldn't surprise her if they demanded to inspect it come Monday, actually.

Her socks hid the cold stick-on compress and she managed to fool even her grandmother… that is… until Tezuka showed up on their doorstep when they stepped out. He was probably waiting there for several minutes, waiting for them. They greeted as they approached him before he silently took the food containers from her hands, placed them on a bench, placed _her_ on his back, picked the containers up and then casually turned to greet the old woman who was gaping at him like he'd just dropped down from the sky wearing a pink tutu and proclaimed himself ruler of the universe.

A quick explanation had her grandmother lecturing her about taking care of herself and got lectured on how she should be more careful next time. They were then coupled with some very loud "What were you thinking!" which she'd bet that the people all the way in China could hear…

As if she was some kind of daredevil who thrived on living dangerously by getting up close and personal with projectile tennis balls or something.

By the time her grandmother got to the "You should just stay at home" or the dreaded "you're grounded", Sakuno was thankful that Tezuka intervened with that mature way of his.

"I'll make sure she doesn't strain herself, sensei." Were the magical words that calmed the tennis coach enough to stop breathing fire, and she apparently trusted him enough to take care of her precious granddaughter enough to drop them off at the train station without as much as another lecture.

They got their fair share of curious looks from strangers – it wasn't everyday that you saw a little girl piggybacking a teenager, even if you lived in Tokyo - but their travel was pretty much uneventful. No surprise meetings on the train, no familiar faces, at least to their knowledge. Yes, apparently her grandmother trusted the buchou more than her but she wasn't complaining one bit. It had some advantages after all.

The bakery was manned by only one person when they arrived. Sakuno could never tire of that fresh baked smell and the welcoming chime of the bells as they tinkled overhead, signaling new arrivals to the store.

"Irasshaimase!" was quickly followed by "Tezuka-san!" and a pleased "Sakuno-san, didn't I tell you that you didn't need to come?" followed with a very confused "What are you doing on Tezuka-san's back?" in which a brief explanation was made by Tezuka as he deemed it safe to put his kouhai down so she can walk on her own two legs just as long as she didn't wander away outside of the bakery.

The brief but detailed enough rendition of the events that transpired left Shigeru with a not-so-small dislike for this unknown rival captain, but it was soon forgotten as he narrated to them the reasons why he was alone guarding the store.

Kinoshita Kageto, the unimportant employee with the mushroom haircut that no one pays much attention to and was always forgotten or left out of important stuff, was on a week-long vacation to visit his mom.

Azusagawa Tsukino would have been here with them, but she was called to an emergency meeting with the board of directors. If it wasn't so urgent she would have stayed to care for Kazuma, but it was, so she had no other choice.

The manager, Matsushiro Ken, was whisked away to do something 'important' by some of his 'friends', Shigeru explained. He mumbled something that resembled "Hashiguchi", in which Tezuka arched a brow and responded with:

"Hashiguchi? You mean the Hashiguchi Yakuza?" Referring to, of course, the most popular, biggest, baddest and most influential Yakuza gang in Japan right now. Everyone and anyone with half a brain knew who they were. Yakuza gangs were dangerous and not to be trifled with and the Hashiguchi Yakuza were at the top of that dangerous pyramid right now.

Shigeru merely waved his curiosity away, continuing with his explanation.

Kawachi Kyousuke, who was an employee of the Main Branch, he said, was upstairs tending to Kazuma. Kawachi was Kazuma's longest acquaintance in the Pantasia group and was probably closest to him; his bestfriend. He was a Kansai native who had dreams of making it big in the city and was able to fulfill it with direct and indirect help from his buddy Kazuma. It went unsaid that Kawachi still held a deep affinity for the smaller branch, since he preferred to spend his off days here.

It was a good thing, because with only two people in the staff left and with one down with a high fever, the responsibility was left upon Shigeru's shoulders to keep it open.

"I was seriously considering just closing up for the day," he informed them. The customers tended to come in at the most inconvenient times – just when the last minutes to baking the bread were ticking to its last. "I can't really tell the customers to come at certain schedules and most of them have bad timing. I almost burned several batches this morning." He laughed.

And that was saying a lot, considering how thorough and precise he was, being a Harvard genius and a multi-task master. He took several steps towards the door and inverted the sign to indicate that the store was closed and lead them upstairs.

Tezuka, of course, didn't deem it safe enough for Sakuno to make it on her own two feet, which earned him a beaming smile and praise from the older yet shorter boy.

On the second level, they were met with an anxious-looking Kawachi.

"Kanmuri, you really should build a handle on the inside of that freezer, so that Kazuma could quit getting stuck in it until someone arrives to defrost him. You know how big of an idiot he is – oh hi Sakuno! Have you come to visit? I swear your cousin is the biggest blockhead this side of Japan." Everybody could see that he was worried for his friend, so they allowed him to get it out of his system. "How many times do you have to literally _freeze_ before you get it through your thick skull that you shouldn't allow the door to close when you get ingredients from the freezer? I swear, when Kami was handing out intelligence, your cousin was probably too busy to line up to get it because he was baking bread. Oh hey, Tezuka! Long time no see."

The younger teen merely blinked and bowed his head a little. "Kawachi-san."

"Thank you for taking care of him, Kawachi-san." Sakuno had a proverbial sweatdrop hanging over her head. She didn't know how to respond to his verbal chastising of her sick cousin because, frankly, he was absolutely right. Normal people didn't get themselves stuck inside walk-in freezers as a daily routine.

She wasn't criticizing her cousin. Who was she to criticize, considering her ability to attract accidents like iron to magnet, right? She was just making an observation. Maybe it ran in their family…

Kawachi looked away and tried to deny that he did such a thing, but the proof was right there in the basin of iced water and wet cloth beside him. Sakuno wobbled her way to her cousin's side, timidly sat down and dipped the cloth into the basin with practiced ease. The men continued to talk as she sponged whatever parts she could reach.

"Kanmuri, do you need help in the kitchen?"

"No thanks, Kawachi-san. It's just a bit difficult to bake and watch the store at the same time since the customers tend to come in at the most inconvenient of times."

"I could help you out if you want." Even if he didn't want to, he could leave Kazuma alone now that his cousin was here. Someone really should build an idiot-proof walk-in freezer one of these days. "Even if I don't work for this branch, I can't just leave you to burn the kitchen down."

"Hidoi desu ne, Kawachi-san. That's really very cruel of you to say so. I've never burned any kitchens before."

"There's always a first for everything. Did you bring lunch for us, Sakuno?" Kawachi sniffed the container that Tezuka and Sakuno brought; he wasn't really concerned about things like manners. "Wha- it's just chicken soup." He sounded deflated.

"I'll make us some lunch, Kawachi-san!" Sakuno assured him. "Don't worry."

"You don't need to do it! I can help you with that!" Kawachi replied a little too fast. "I've _seen_ you operate in the kitchen." He shuddered. "You're worse than Azuma with a knife. I still remember having a little heart attack each time you slipped and looked like you were cutting a finger off. It's a miracle all your limbs are still in tact!" When he used to work in the same small kitchen as Kazuma, he often went through several near-death experiences involving Kazuma and sharp objects. Maybe it ran in the family. The one thing the cousins had in common was that every time they finished using the kitchen, it always ended up looking like a disaster area, no matter how delicious the end result was.

Sakuno was doing a good job at imitating a tomato because of Kawachi's frank comments. He was never one to mince with words. She couldn't help it that she was afraid of sharp objects. Ehe.

"I can help Kanmuri-san man the store." Tezuka volunteered. He wasn't really needed upstairs; Sakuno could tend to Kazuma by herself since she didn't have to walk around to do it. The television, refrigerator, sink and pretty much everything else was within a spitting distance.

"Ah, you're too kind but you don't have to do that, Tezuka-san."

Tezuka met his sentence with his usual blank stare.

Shigeru stared back, smiling, and there was silence as Sakuno and Kawachi waited.

Shigeru blinked while Tezuka continued to stare.

The sound of water being squeezed from a wet cloth and pouring back unto the basin was heard as Sakuno moved.

Kazuma moaned in his fevered sleep.

"Um," Shigeru scratched his pink head in defeat. "Thanks for the help. I'll be waiting downstairs when you're ready then." They both stood up at the same time. "Or.. right now would be fine. I guess you could call us when lunch is done…?"

Kawachi nodded.

"I swear your boyfriend gives me the creeps sometimes, Sakuno."

The wet cloth hit him square on the face.

"Mitsu-nii is _not_ my boyfriend, Kawachi-san!"

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"If you need help with anything, don't hesitate to call me."

How a guy be so chirpy like that was a mystery to him. Maybe it was a genius thing. Fuji could be chirpy and all smiles whenever he wanted to.

…

…

At least the apron wasn't pink.

It was an off-white color with a Pantasia logo on the left chest portion.

_Sigh._

Someone remind him why he volunteered for this again?

_THUMP._

"Ack! Gomen, Kawachi-san!"

_CRASH!_

_BANG!_

"Damn it Sakuno, didn't I tell you to just sit your a- a – err… just SIT DOWN and tend to Kazuma! I haven't poisoned anyone with my food yet, have I? I might not cook as good as you do but my food is still edible. Just go back, SIT!" The employees of the rival bakery St. Pierre probably heard him across the street.

_THUD._

_CRACK!_

"**SIT DOWN**!"

Oh.

Yeah…

_That_ was why.

Despite the various… disturbing… dangerous… noises coming from upstairs, he never doubted Kawachi's ability to keep the girl in one piece at all.

Nope, not one bit.

The faint twitching of his left eye was for another reason. He'd bet his most prized tennis racket on it.

Ever since he donned the white apron, the bell chimed every ten minutes or so. Maybe if he gave up on tennis, he could consider a career on sales.

…

Not really.

He was half-expecting a familiar face to accompany the bell chime, but none came so far.

Which was a good thing.

It wasn't like anybody he knew was going to come waltzing into the store anytime soon anyway. It was a Saturday and normal kids his age spent their days with friends, out somewhere – at a park maybe or at the mall.

Not that he dared to venture near any malls lately. The horrors of his last trip to the mall were still fresh in his mind. He wasn't really raving to go back and relive it anytime soon.

Maybe in a year or so, but not yet.

The bell chimed just as Shigeru just came from behind to help with the front desk. The bread in the oven weren't set to cook for another forty minutes or so and he needed a break from the kitchen.

"So you're seriously going to stay with Hyotei even when you reach highschool?" A part of their conversation floated into the bakery just as the pair opened the door and let themselves in.

"Father has already agreed with my decision and Hyotei has a really great tennis team." When his older cousin didn't look too impressed, he added "And besides, if it's good enough for Atobe, why wouldn't it be good enough for me?"

"Irasshaimase!" One cheery and one monotone voice greeted, interrupting their conversation.

When Ohtori Choutarou turned to acknowledge the employees, he stopped in the middle of the aisle, almost causing his cousin to bump into him. He blinked several times and then reached up to rub a hand over his eyes.

Nope, he wasn't hallucinating.

No amount of blinking or rubbing made the image disappear and the surprise was very evident in his voice. "Tezuka-san?" He mouthed Tezuka's name like a totally rabid otaku would say 'anime'. "Wh- what are you – you're a – you work for Pantasia?" He asked the Tezuka look-alike behind the counter, who was standing beside a guy with pink hair.

"Friend of yours?" His younger cousin looked like he needed a good poke in the ribs.

"Ah!" The pink-haired guy stepped out of the counter. "You're a friend of Tezuka-san? I'm Kanmuri Shigeru. Tezuka-san is visiting us with a friend today and was kind enough to volunteer since we're understaffed."

"I'm Ohtori Choutarou and this is my cousin, Ohtori Kyouya. It's a pleasure to meet you." Both cousins were blessed with impressive heights and Shigeru was the shortest one in the group. Both were tall and good-looking, but while Choutarou had the physique of an athlete, his cousin held a scholar's look, complete with expensive-looking wire-rimmed glasses. "He's in highschool and he goes to Ouran." Choutarou continued to babble on, amazed to find Tezuka in the bakery.

Tezuka met his enthusiasm with a polite gaze. "Kanmuri-san recently graduated from Harvard."

…

What?

It was the truth and Ohtori wasn't the only one who knew people who went to very prestigious schools. Everyone who was anyone knew what Ouran Highschool was. Only the crème of the crop, richest of the richest, those of admirable lineage, best pedigree and a lot of money went to school there and he often times wondered why Atobe didn't.

Choutarou, being part of the Ohtori family who owned the Ohtori Group of Companies, was also credible enough to get into the elite school but both remained in Hyotei. Hyotei, after all, had the best tennis program among the more expensive schools for rich kids. Ouran had a tennis club, among other things, just like any normal school, and it was pretty decent, but why settle for good when you can have the best?

"What could we do for you today, Ohtori-san? May we interest you in some of our French bread? Or maybe you'd like to try our selection of sweet breads?" Shigeru was in sales mode.

Choutarou scratched his head while Kyouya surveyed what the store had to offer. "Actually Shigeru-san, my friends are interested in sampling a 'JaPan'. Our parents are in, uh, business together and we were having a little social gathering while the parentals were talking business." He turned to confide the next sentence more to Tezuka. "Atobe started talking about his afternoon yesterday and before you knew it, he was suggesting that we all try this JaPan thing. Now everyone's interested in it so here we are…"

"A friend of mine," Kyouya interpolated, "is really curious about -" _commoner folks and their food _"- these things, and Chou was the only one who knew about what Atobe was talking about so I tagged along." _For research purposes._

"Ah! Then you're in luck. We have our Black JaPan baked fresh today and we haven't ran out of Number Fifty-Seven, the Kabukiage JaPan yet."

"Interesting," Kyouya remarked, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. It gave Tezuka a sense of déjà vu. "So this JaPan has more than one flavor and there is up to fifty-seven of them?"

"Oh there's more than fifty-seven, but Azuma-kun stopped numbering them a while back." After they came home from the Monaco Cup, to be exact. "He still makes new ones but they're no longer numbered."

Kyouya was now holding a really expensive-looking pen and leather-bound notebook, poised to take notes. "Interesting. Tell me more." The sheltered rich people in his club were always eager to try commoner food and this JaPan might go well with the fabled instant coffee that everyone in the club was hooked on now, especially the twins and Tamaki. One could never get enough leverage or bargaining options, in his opinion.

Shigeru was more than happy to explain it to him, number by number, so they went off engrossed in conversation, leaving the two tennis players behind.

Choutarou chuckled, looking a little embarrassed. "Kyouya-nii-sama likes to gather data." Tezuka silently empathized with him. "His bestfriend is a very interesting fellow. Reminds me of Atobe sometimes…" Why Choutarou was sharing this with Tezuka, he didn't know.

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"You'll never believe who we ran into in the bakery." Choutarou sat down on one of the unoccupied lavish settees after coming back from the errand. Around him, lots of other rich kids his age were gathering around an attractive blonde guy who was recounting his exploits with 'commoner's food'. The girls were especially drawn to him; they flocked around him like his own personal harem.

"Oh yeah?" said the boy who listened with half an ear to his schoolmate and half an ear to the blonde. Gatherings like these bored him to tears but it was a part of who he was. Appearances had to be kept and one had to establish friendships with people whom you were going to be dealing with in business years from now, after you graduated and took over your family's company. He would have much preferred to spend his Saturday at home, lounging by the pool or playing with Beat, but duty called. At least he wasn't alone, even if Kabaji wasn't here with him… and Suoh who had a knack for making women swoon was entertaining, too. Maybe it was because of those rose petals that mysteriously float out of nowhere whenever he sweet-talked the ladies. The scent of roses reminded him of a certain clumsy little girl for some reason, but it served well for Tamaki's purposes, too. "Who?"

Choutarou reached for one of the breads that he and his cousin brought back and took a bite before he answered. He didn't mind going on that errand. In fact, if it meant that he would get a reprieve from the stuffiness of the gathering, he would gladly volunteer to go out to get some again. "Tezuka-san."

Atobe blinked, then turned to his teammate. "You saw Tezuka in the bakery? What a coincidence."

"Yeah, wasn't it?" Choutarou finished his bread in record time and reached for another. It was delicious! "He was helping out because they were understaffed today. That's what the guy told me." It was the most delicious bread he has ever tasted in his whole life! Why didn't he know about this before! "I thought I was hallucinating at first, but it turns out he goes there often enough to be in good terms with the staff. You can ask Kyouya-nii-sama if you don't believe me. I couldn't believe it myself."

His brilliant mind quickly analyzed the situation. Tezuka was in the bakery and was helping out because they were supposedly understaffed. Choutarou went on this errand because he was talking about JaPan earlier, which piqued Tamaki's interest who fueled the hunt for said bread and there was only one place where you can buy this bread. Why would the likes of Tezuka be there in the first place? "Did you see a girl with long braids with him?"

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_ACHOO!_

"Excuse me."

"Bless you." "Bless you." "Bless you!" Sakuno, Shigeru and Kawachi said at the same time.

Tezuka rubbed his itchy nose before he uncovered his hand from it. "Thank you." A chill just ran down his spine before he sneezed, he wondered what that was about.

It was now lunch time and Shigeru decided to close down the store. After the Ohtori cousins purchased most of their baked goods, he closed the store for the day and announced that they should pop in a movie to spend the rest of the afternoon in the apartment upstairs. Since he was his own boss, he could do what he wanted to do so they chose a movie.

While Shigeru and Kawachi prepared lunch, Tezuka sat with Sakuno. Kazuma was still asleep, stretched out on his futon. Sakuno sat beside him as she wrung the wet towel over the basin of ice-cold water and sponged whatever body part she could reach. The cold from the water made her fingers look like a prune, but the mild discomfort was rewarded by Kazuma's sighs of pleasure.

His fever gradually went down.

She repeated the process every hour or so, changing the water and refilling the ice to keep it cool each time. By the time they were finished with lunch and the movie, Kazuma's temperature was significantly down and Sakuno looked a little worse for wear. It was all worth it, in her opinion.

Kazuma had bouts of consciousness in between, but he didn't really make much sense. He mistook Sakuno for his nee-chan once, and the second time he was half-conscious, he kept calling her 'Meister Kirisaki' and kept asking her about a peacock. Kawachi busted out laughing both times and even Shigeru couldn't hold his laughter during the second incident, but both Sakuno and Tezuka were at a total loss as to what they found funny.

The sun was just making its way towards the horizon when the two students from Seigaku left the bakery.

"Bye-bye, Sakuno-san!" Both Pantasia employees said; Shigeru's hair looked more orange than pink as he waved them off into the sunset. "See you next week!"

"Bye-bye!" Sakuno happily waved back from Tezuka's back.

As the two teens departed over the next block, Kawachi stretched. "Chaa… Kids these days are more mature than I was when I was in their grade."

Shigeru understood what he meant. He smiled, recalling a story that Sakuno told him before. "I heard that Tezuka-san was mistaken for one of their teachers once."

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Her eyes were as round as saucers, threatening to take over half of her face, if that was even humanly possible. Her heart was thumping so loud, she could _feel_ it in her ears. Swallowing was difficult, but that was okay because her mouth was dry and there was a huge stone lodged in her throat anyway.

_Breathe_, her brain flickered to remind her, but was ignored.

_Oh my god._

She forgot how to breathe!

"In and out, Sakuno." The voice sounded distant, for she'd gone deaf in the span of five seconds. "Breathe." It said once again, firmly and closer to her ear this time. A warm hand rubbed her back, gently coaxing her lungs to function once more.

…_In._

…_Out._

There you go.

Tezuka's sigh was accompanied by an eye-roll. He never thought the day would come that he would see his young friend get awe-struck by someone.

_Do you like him more than you like Eyes Rutherford?_

Approximately five minutes ago, they found themselves in front of the Go Salon that Touya Kouyo, father of Touya Akira, owned on their way home and they had thought 'why not?'

She felt bad about having him do 'back-breaking labor' today so she easily agreed to stepping in and taking a look, maybe even playing a game while they were there. It wasn't everyday that you got to see the buchou be a novice at anything.

He was looking forward to doing what he was supposed to do yesterday before it was interrupted by Fuji's detour.

The Salon was classy; like a quaint high-end café. There were two levels – one was higher where you had to use the stairs to get to it, and one had a darker, more subdued setting.

Two silhouetted figures were playing near the elaborately lighted fish tank in the darker lower level; he noticed as the attendant accepted his money. You had to pay to play in Go Salons, and if you were lucky, the salon's foremost expert or resident tutor would even coach you and play a tutoring game with you.

Apparently, they were more than lucky that night, since not only was Touya Akira himself was there, that same day, in the same salon, but he was also arguing against none other than Shindou Hikaru.

"Oh yeah? But you left yourself wide open right here." Shindou Hikaru, now age 16 and still sporting his two-colored hair, was telling him as he pointed on a spot on the grid.

"It doesn't matter because you didn't even notice this move right here." Touya pointed to another spot, standing up.

Shindou also stood up and glared at Touya from across the board. "I made up for that weakness by attacking you right here."

"But you didn't stand a chance on this side."

Their voices were escalating with each sentence.

"Yare-yare, there they go again." The clerk sighed, then had an idea. "Touya-san, Shindou-kun!" The two arguing professional Go players stopped in mid-tirade and turned to her. "I have a couple of beginners for you. I was wondering if you would be willing to play a tutoring game of Go with them?"

A tutoring game meant that the more experienced player observed how you played against them and then offer you tips after the game finished. Since Shindou and Touya were way beyond Tezuka and Sakuno in experience, it meant that they would have to replay the game after it was over and then give them advice on what they should and should not have done. In simpler terms, the more experienced player is the teacher and the inexperienced one is the student. The student and teacher play a game together, then after the game, the teacher tells the student ways on how to improve his or her strategy in the future.

The sight of Touya and Shindou arguing over a game they have just finished playing was common occurrence in the salon; not even the customers were affected by the ruckus anymore. It was the same old story each time: Game finishes and the two sixteen year olds discuss it. Sure they would start out being extremely courteous to each other and even go as far as to compliment each others brilliant moves, but it always progressed the same way.

The brown-haired kid with the blonde bangs would start criticizing the kid with the bluegreen hair about it (or vice versa) and it would continue for several minutes until it escalates into a shouting match between who said "I see" more.

Yep, even though they were both professionals in the difficult game of Go, both were still teenagers and prone to bouts of childish tempers.

It also didn't help one bit that both were extremely competitive, especially when it comes to the game that they loved the most.

"I didn't know Touya Akira and Shindou Hikaru were friends." Tezuka was surprised. They seemed so different, from what he had read of them in the newspapers.

Touya Akira was destined to be a force to reckon with in the world of Go at age three. His father formerly held five different titles and was said to be the strongest Go player in Japan right now. He was even often compared to Honinbou Shuusaku, the one player in all of Go history who was said to be the strongest. Ever. Touya Kouyo, father of Touya Akira, retired recently, but his son was almost as good as him, despite his youth, that people continued to be excited for the future of Go.

Touya Akira liked to dress in collared shirts, slacks, preppy sweaters and loafers… like someone straight out of a GQ magazine.

Shindou Hikaru looked like any normal non-preppy teenager who rolled out of bed and put on the first set of clothes he got his hands on. Baggy jeans, shirts, sneakers… you know the drill.

The thought of the two Go players being friends with each other boggled the mind.

The clerk laughed a little. "They're not really friends… well, they are… I guess… I'd like to call them _rivals_ but yeah, they're friends too."

"You have some beginners for us today?" Shindou and Touya were now standing in front of Tezuka and Sakuno, smiling at them. Their previous argument was all but forgotten.

Touya stepped on Shindou's foot discreetly after the boy just gawked at the tall teenager with a little girl on his back. "Welcome to the salon! I would love to play a tutoring game of Go with you. I'm sure Shindou is, too." Shindou snapped to attention and nodded, then glared at Touya for stepping on his foot.

"We would appreciate that very much." Tezuka inclined his head because it would look funny if he attempted to bow with his cargo.

"Is your sister injured?" Hikaru wondered out loud.

"She had a bad fall yesterday," Tezuka explained. "And she's not my sister." Sakuno didn't say anything.

"This way." Touya directed them near the lighted fish tank.

That had been five minutes ago, and now, after Tezuka managed to coax Sakuno into breathing again after setting her down, they were playing Go; Tezuka against Touya and trembling Sakuno against Shindou.

_Do you like him more than you like Eyes Rutherford?_

The answer was clear to him. If Kirihara were here right now, Tezuka would confidently tell him yes, Sakuno **_definitely_** likes "him" more than Eyes Rutherford. They all posed for pictures and asked autographs with Eyes, but Sakuno hadn't been reduced to a statue having a mild heartattack then.

And Fuji accused _him_ of being a 'fanboy'?

Psh.

Sakuno's game finished before Tezuka's and from the corner of his eye, he would bet his left shoulder that she was more preoccupied with trying her best not to stare at Shindou star struck rather than how to move her stones on the board.

"Instead of defending yourself on this move, it would have been better if you attacked here instead." Touya suggested. His hair looked greener as did his eyes, whenever he was giving instructions. Or maybe it was just the lighting in the room. Tezuka nodded, seeing the knowledge in it. "And if you did that, you could have taken this move next." Once again, Tezuka bobbed his head in agreement. Touya Akira had a lot of great advice for him, and he was more than willing to listen to it.

Much later, after bidding their students for that night goodbye and seeing them off, Shindou couldn't help but admire the young man whom Touya had been tutoring. "I wonder if I was ever that serious when I was his age."

Touya shot him an amused look. "You talk as if you're more than only two years older than him." It was a basic rule to know your student's age as well as his or her level in Go before the start of a lesson. It's also common courtesy. "And just what are you talking about? You're _never_ serious."

Shindou glared at him. "Shut up." Touya merely stared back at him in that condescending way of his. His bestfriend could be such a pain in the ass sometimes. He counted to ten before he spoke again. "His cousin was a little timid though. I think she was scared of me. Her stones kept rattling on the Go board every time she moved." He wondered if all girls were like that or if he did something to scare her before or during they played.

"Cousin?" Touya was amused at Shindou's naivety. "The girl wasn't his cousin." Shindou raised a brow at him. Touya was surprised he wasn't able to figure it all out by himself. "Didn't you notice how he kept looking at your game in the corner of his eyes?"

Shindou shook his head, his bangs swayed back and forth. "No." He was totally clueless. What did that have to do with - "If the girl wasn't his cousin then what was she?"

Touya held his laughter in. "That was his girlfriend."

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For some reason, Tezuka felt the overwhelming need to sneeze again. And he did. _Achoo!_ "Excuse me."

"Bless you."

"Thank you."

"You've been sneezing a lot today. Are you coming down with something?" They got caught in the cold yesterday and he was exposed to a sick Kazuma today… oh no. She put a hand to his forehead but was relieved to find his temperature to be perfectly normal.

Tezuka shook his head in denial after she retracted her soft hand. "Do you want to stop by somewhere to eat or would you like to eat at home?"

As tempting as getting some milkshake and fries for dinner sounded, she knew he preferred home cooked meals over fast food and she seriously owed him for today. "I'd have to stop by the supermarket but I could cook some unadon if you want."

Unadon is short for Unagi Domburi: Unagi meaning "eel" and domburi being "rice bowl". Eel is grilled and prepared in a thick soya-based sauce and then served on top of cooked rice.

Apparently, eel was the magic word since they were soon picking out ingredients from their local grocery store.

The Marutomi Supermarket was bustling with activity. People of all ages were present. A child was pitching a tantrum in the corner while vendors were announcing limited sales. Dads were pushing their carts around, their children safely seated in the front. Colorful signs marked the prices of each item and the checkout lines were never empty.

A quick brush through the grocery lanes and they soon found themselves waiting in line to pay for their purchases. People still gave them odd looks here and there but they were used to it by now.

"Sakuno-chan…?" A voice asked from behind them.

Tezuka turned curiously and found himself staring down into deep brown eyes. He didn't think it was possible for someone to have bigger doe-eyes than Sakuno, but apparently, he was mistaken. The girl – er, boy – or whatever she or he was he was looking at right now probably possessed the biggest honeyed gaze in Japan.

He couldn't decide if the person was a boy or a girl. He or she was wearing a brown plaid overcoat and his or her hair was cut short. It was really hard to tell. If she was a girl, she was really pretty yet she could pass herself off as a boy. If he was a boy, then he was a really pretty one.

And maybe those rumors about him being gay had some basis after all.

The boy – er, girl – or whatever he or she was blinked at the girl attached to his back and then looked curiously at him. "Why are you riding piggyback?"

Tezuka placed his items on the conveyer belt and waited for the clerk to ring up his items.

"He wouldn't let me walk by myself." Sakuno grinned in reply. "I haven't seen you in a while, nee-chan!"

_Nee-chan._

Ah, so those rumors had no basis. At all.

And she was a girl.

…

He knew that.

The polite thing to do was to wait for the mystery girl to finish paying for her purchases so Sakuno could continue her conversation with her, so Tezuka waited.

"Uweh… I heard some celebrities visited you recently? I heard some of the neighbors talking about it. Your landlady said that they were riding foreign cars and everything!" Sakuno gushed.

Haruhi looked a little pained. "Ahe… no… they weren't celebrities. They were just classmates. Really, really nosy classmates who live their lives without knowing what the real hardships of living in this world are." A slight tick developed on her forehead.

A vision of Atobe proclaiming his awesomeness popped into Sakuno's imagination. "I think we know a guy like that."

Tezuka grunted in agreement.

"Imagine having to deal with six of them all at once and having two tricksters, one sadist and one drama king. The other two aren't as bad but they have their moments."

The pair from Seigaku visibly shuddered as they conjured up images of two Nious, a Fuji and an even worse Atobe together.

The two girls chatted for a while, making up for lost time as they walked home. Sakuno introduced the two of them to each other, and they exchanged polite nods before the girls continued their discussion.

During that time, Tezuka learned that Haruhi lived in the apartment complex that was only a mere block away from Sakuno's house and when they were little kids, Sakuno often played with her and someone named Ranka-san dressed Sakuno in frilly little garments that were meant for Haruhi but were left untouched because the girl wasn't as girly as the Ranka person wanted her to be.

"Haruhi is in highschool and she just transferred to Ouran," Sakuno told him. He wondered what the chances were of meeting two people from the same school on the same day were.

"I'm there because of a scholarship," Haruhi said.

"Haruhi-neechan is really smart," Sakuno added. "When did you cut your hair?"

And they talked. They talked as they walked home.

They talked about food and Haruhi had this dreamy look and tone of voice when they did. It had a hint of sadness when they talked about ootoro or extra fatty special tuna though. Apparently, in all her years, Haruhi has never tasted it even once. Sakuno, who has tasted ootoro courtesy of the Kawamura sushi restaurant, apparently sympathized with her because he could feel the sadness radiating off of her in waves.

He found it odd how two girls would become all weepy over ootoro, but wisely kept his mouth shut and kept out of their conversation.

Girls were weird, that's why he stuck to tennis. Tennis was easier to understand and less complex. It didn't go into mood swings or look at you with big pleading puppy dog eyes when it wanted something from you or make you act out of character like Momo tripping all over himself whenever Ann was around. Tennis was a good mistress, unlike girls, and it made total sense.

Girly conversations he had the misfortune to overhear in school often consisted of "blah blah blah boys" and "blah blah blah clothes" or "blah blah blah makeup" and "blah blah blah shopping", but for some reason, whenever he was with the coach's granddaughter, all the conversations made sense.

"So soy sauce poured over crème caramel doesn't really taste like sea urchin."

"Waaaah… I didn't know that. You've learned a lot now from your new school, Haruhi-neechan! Remember when we tried putting honey on cucumber to see if it would taste like melon?"

The highschool girl laughed. "I remember! And that time when we topped raw tuna with mayonnaise and dipped it in soy sauce to taste like ootoro?"

…

Even if they bordered on being weird.

Soon they reached the apartment complex and Sakuno waved goodbye to her friend.

After they parted ways with Haruhi and made their way home to cook dinner, they walked for several moments of companionable silence before Tezuka asked with _just_ a hint of gloating in his voice. "Didn't I tell you that Touya Akira was the better player?"

Sakuno didn't reply verbally, but dainty little hands reached from behind and enclosed around his throat.

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_Dear Daniel Radcliffe,_

_Kawachi-san suggested that I name my diary today so I've chosen to name you Daniel Radcliffe, my one true love. _

_I had two dozen tulips waiting for me when I came home from the supermarket on Saturday, and I almost didn't believe my mother when she told me that they were for me until I read the note. They were from Atobe-san, a gesture of apology for the accident. No boy has ever given me flowers before, so I was pretty happy, even though they weren't sent with romantic intentions._

_They were really beautiful flowers. They looked like they cost a lot of money, which was kind of a shame if you think about how many meals you could eat with it._

_I placed them in a simple vase with water and proudly placed them on top of my desk upstairs, inside my bedroom. I thought their beauty would help inspire me to finish my weekend homework, which I have neglected to do so far._

_Bad move._

_It turns out that I'm allergic to tulips. Go figure._

_I woke up on Sunday morning with a huge urge to scratch. The itching was so strong, I could feel it under my skin. Mom was pretty freaked when she saw me come downstairs for breakfast, so I avoided looking at the mirror, just to be safe. _

_I was taken to the doctor immediately, and we found out I was allergic to the flowers. Or the pollen… something or other. It's pretty hard to concentrate when your whole body is itching and you can only scratch on two places at once but your mother won't even allow you to do it. All I know is that the tulips caused it and the tulips came from Atobe-san._

_I'm sure he didn't mean for any harm to come to me, so I'm not blaming him. It wasn't his fault that I got clumsy on the tennis courts last Friday and my current allergies aren't his responsibility as well. _

_I mean, how would he know that I would have such a… colorful… reaction to his apology gift, eh? I surely didn't. Only a clumsy little freak like me would be allergic to expensive tulips._

_I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing (the itching is really impeding my thought capabilities at the moment), but the doctor ordered me to stay home on Monday. I guess I should finish up here and call Tomo-chan. I wouldn't want her to worry about me not showing up for school on Monday or anything._

_Wishing she had more calamine lotion,_

_Sakuno _

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_Just for ten minutes._

She just needed to close her eyes for just ten minutes and that foggy vision she'd been operating on the whole morning was going to be gone, she was sure of it.

If only the ground cooperated and didn't rotate whenever she took a step…

Taking Monday off was okay and all, but she had to come to school on Tuesday to take that English test. The itching had subsided by now and she didn't have as many unsightly rashes on her skin as much as she had on Sunday morning anymore. Hey, even her non-existent foot injury had healed so everything was peachy.

She used her time off yesterday to study her notes again, hoping to gain something from her three day weekend. She had to take this test or else her tutor was going to be ashamed of her, so she dragged her heavy body out of bed that morning. But for some reason, her body felt like lead today.

She was a more than a little off-balance when she came to school since this morning, but it was nothing that a short nap couldn't solve. Maybe she shouldn't have stayed up so late reviewing her notes. Keeping up her cheerful and somewhat healthy appearance in front of Tomoka was more difficult than keeping her eyes open. That girl had sharper eyes than an eagle.

Tomoka told her to go to the nurse's office but a nap outside, where a cool breeze was blowing sounded so much better. The girl had been insistent so when recess came, Sakuno volunteered to go without any more prodding.

Somehow though, she ended up outside and under a tree. The call of a short nap and fresh breeze was just more favorable than a nurse poking at you.

So she wobbled her way to the shaded spot, got really comfortable and then proceeded to doze off, secured in the fact that the bell was going to alert her of the time. When it did, she was going to wake up from her nap and walk back to class fully refreshed, proving that a nap would trump a visit to the nurse's office any day.

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It seemed like no matter what he did, his path was always going to cross with Ryuzaki's. The girl didn't even have to put any effort into it since she seemed like a total natural at it. From that first meeting on the train to her bad directions that cost him his game… if he didn't know any better, he would start believing in things like fate and destiny.

He had to keep himself from snorting. Yeah right. Real men didn't believe in girly stuff like fate and destiny. Real men like him lived their own lives and set their own paths, destiny be damned. That he was sitting on a branch of the very tree that Ryuzaki decided to slumber against _again_ was just a mere coincidence.

Like lightning striking the same spot twice.

Did all girls fall asleep within the blink of an eye or was it just her? He heard she was sick the day before. He frowned, thinking back to the conversation he overheard yesterday. Horio was wondering out loud why Ryuzaki hadn't been in school that day and Fuji asked his coach the question. Her answer was that someone sent her flowers she was allergic to and had to stay home until her rashes were gone. Since he wasn't super bestfriends with her unlike some people on the team, he resumed his warm-up exercises as the others plied their sensei with more questions. He later overheard from Horio's conversation with Katsuo and Kachiro that the flowers had been from Atobe.

He almost tripped on his own feet before he gained his balance and continued with his practice. But one question plagued him. Why was the monkey king sending Ryuzaki flowers?

Since they were on friendly (he hoped) terms with each other, being on the same grade, going to the same school, his being a part of her grandmother's tennis team and her being one of the unofficial cheerleaders of said tennis team and all, he figured that he could say… casually… ask her the question if the topic ever came up. He was merely curious. There was nothing wrong with being curious. Karupin was curious all the time and nobody ever hated Karupin for it.

He wrestled with that thought for several minutes until he came to a sound decision.

Yes, he can ask Ryuzaki because there was absolutely nothing wrong about being curious. Especially since they pretty much hung out around the same set of friends - even if he didn't belong to the people who were on a first-name basis with her. He still belonged to that group that had to call her Ryuzaki, unlike crass people from other schools.

That decided, he hopped down from the branch soundlessly. Upon his approach, he noticed that her skin looked a bit more flushed than normal, and she was breathing rather unevenly, like a person who had fever.

He poked her shoulder gently. "Ryuzaki," he whispered, reluctant to disturb her slumber. She looked like she needed it badly. There was something seriously wrong with this picture.

When she didn't awake from several additional pokes, he gave in to his curiosity and laid a hand against her forehead. It was hot. Ryuzaki was running up a high fever and she was napping outside under a tree instead of being in the clinic.

The bell suddenly rang, signaling the end of recess but it didn't even disturb her one bit. "Baka," he sighed. He was only slightly taller than her but he was pretty strong for his age. He swiftly contemplated the best way to carry her to the nurse's office without getting accused of being a pervert. His first thought was to drape her on his back and carry her piggyback, but the image of Fuji-senpai and then the buchou carrying her the same way flashed through his mind and left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Scratching that idea out, he decided to carry her in his arms instead. One arm was gently placed behind the back of her knees and the other supported her back as he lifted her off the ground, bent his knees and stood up.

It was great in theory but the braids got in the way. When he stood up, he tripped on them halfway and was forced to let go of his hold behind the back of her knees to favor encircling her waist instead. Fast reflexes saved them both from hitting the ground as he twisted to gain balance by the help of the tree that made contact with his back. The feverish sleeping girl tucked her head in the crook of his neck and moaned. She was probably having some nice fluffy dream while he did all the labor of ensuring that she got to the nurse's office safely. With the help of his hands on her waist, she was sleeping while standing on her own two feet, leaning against him for support.

_Oh my god._

He was now standing beneath a tree, arms around Ryuzaki's waist and her head snuggled on his neck. He could feel her breath on his skin… among other things. Her upper torso was pressed against his.

He blushed wildly, getting his mind off of body parts and what-not and tried to concentrate on moving her instead. He was just going to have to make sure that her dangerous braids weren't in the way when he tried to lift her up and attempted to walk again.

He needn't have had to contemplate how to move her a minute later, or ponder upon how intimate their close contact looked to a bystander, when a voice startled him from behind.

"Ochibi, why are you hugging Ryuzaki-chan like that?"

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"**Caution: It melts in your brain"**_ equals_** "Please do not take this crack seriously."**

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**( )( )  
('.')  
(")(")**

Bunny cannot believe that people actually read this fic.

**Yare-yare – Good grief! **Or something along the lines of "Jeebus, man!" (Sorry but "good grief" doesn't do it for me as much as yare-yare does. /runs away/)

Okay, so I couldn't resist adding the choking in, beda! Sorry if this chapter feels rushed but I'm really tired and would like to go back to spending my summer sleeping. 8P Thanks for all your reviews last chapter. /gets all sparkly/

**And remember: Every time you read a chapter and don't review, Santa kills a bunny.** (uso; hindi totoo) So please, think of the bunnies. **Constructive criticism, suggestions, complaints and death threats **from friends and pretty people **are loved and very much appreciated**.


	12. Guruguru Mawaru

♥ **07/13/06** ♥

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To those who saw the first crap… I mean, first _draft_, you'll notice a lot of major differences. XD Crap! I'm still not happy about this chapter, but I've rewritten it three times already and Ate Iska said I should stop sitting on it for another week, so here it is! XD  
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**(o)-(o)  
(-'.'-)  
(")o(")**

♂♀

Shishido Ryou shot his doubles partner a wry look. "Didn't I tell you to keep an eye on him whenever he gets close to that Suoh Tamaki guy from Ouran?"

Ohtori Choutarou had the decency to look extremely embarrassed. It wasn't like he was lax in the 'duty' that Shishido-san appointed to him. "Suoh can be… really persuasive when he wants to. Really!" He reiterated, when Shishido-san didn't look like he believed him. "I think those rose petals that appear out of nowhere have some kind of brainwashing drug to them. Or some kind of technique to make you submit."

"We told you to watch him." Hiyoshi looked really disappointed at his teammate.

"And I did!" Choutarou was outnumbered. "And… and Kabaji should be there! He'd do a better job than me anyway!"

"Kabaji isn't required to attend all those parties, unlike you and Atobe, Chou." Shishido spoke slowly, as if he was explaining it to a two-year old.

Gakuto vehemently nodded beside him. "So it's **your** responsibility!"

"But—"

"Atobe isn't the normal Atobe anymore. That Suoh guy changed him somehow." Even Yuushi was in agreement. "Have you noticed how he's more—"

"Annoying?" Gakuto supplied before his doubles partner could finish his sentence.

Yuushi leveled a look on him and straightened his glasses. "I was going to say _almost cheerful_ but that would do, too."

"I'm beginning to suspect if some alien had taken over his body." Gakuto added.

"Cut him some slack, senpai. Maybe he's just… in love or something."

Yuushi shot Choutarou the most incredulous look he could muster. His amusement came out as a skeptical snort. "To which fangirl?" He asked, humoring his naïve kouhai. Atobe did not fall in love. It was impossible for Atobe to do so considering how he was already in love with himself.

Choutarou seriously gave it some thought before he answered his senpai's question. "Well… I did hear Suoh giving Atobe some advice… I only overheard flowers and such… After that, I know for sure Atobe had some flowers delivered to some girl because Kyouya-niisama saw to it. Apparently, Kyouya-niisama takes care of things like that for their club and Suoh was happy to help. I know it was for a girl because Suoh gets a certain look whenever he's doing something involving girls."

Because he was still humoring his kouhai, he asked another question. "Do you know what kind of flowers he sent?"

Choutarou shook his head. "No, but I can ask Kyouya-niisama for the specifics if you want."

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If Eiji-senpai didn't stop teasing him, he was going to go to jail charged with murder of the first degree at the age of twelve.

"Ochibi and Ryuzaki sitting in a tree… k-i-s-s-i-n-g… First comes love—"

"Eiji," Oishi was trying hard not to show his amusement at how Echizen was taking the teasing.

"— Then comes a carriage—"

"Marriage," Oishi corrected, then stifled a laugh by biting the inside of his cheeks.

Kikumaru paused from wiggling his fingers in front of Ryoma's face. "Hoi?"

Ryoma was sorely tempted to bite those fingers off in a retaliatory act of childishness.

"Then comes marriage," Oishi clarified for him. His face was hurting from trying to keep it from breaking out into a grin or full blown laughter. He didn't want to test Echizen's restraint even more.

"Stop egging him on, Oishi-senpai." Ryoma growled out, clearly he was nearing the end of his patience. Eiji-senpai and Oishi-senpai passing by just when he needed them most was the _worst thing_ that could have happened to him that day. Yes Oishi-senpai solved his problem of how to transport Ryuzaki by carrying her himself - he picked her up with no effort and put his long strides to work – but Kikumaru-senpai had been teasing him non-stop.

"Ochibi and Ryuzaki sitting in a tree…" Kikumaru started again, oblivious to the death glare that said Ochibi was giving him. "k-i-s-s-i-n-g…"

Non. Stop.

"First comes love, then comes marriage—"

Oishi took pity on the boy. Eiji's joking accusations about Echizen being a pervert and taking advantage of Ryuzaki when they found the two freshmen combined with his rendition of the childish rhyme were funny to him, but he didn't think Echizen would be as amused. "You need to go tell Ryuzaki-sensei that her granddaughter is sick." He cut his doubles partner's song off before he could sing more.

Thankfully, the only students left to give them curious stares were the ones who were late in going back to their classrooms. There were only a few who pointed at them and whispered behind their hands. Bunch of gossips.

"Nyaaaah… I don't wanna, Oishi!" Kikumaru pouted. He was having fun teasing his Ochibi and he enjoyed seeing Ochibi squirm and get all red in the face. "How about I carry Ryuzaki-chan to the nurse's office and you go tell Ryuzaki-sensei?" He was already transferring the still unconscious girl from the fukubuchou's arms to his before he finished his sentence. "I'll take good care of her and make sure that she doesn't fall prey to Ochibi's perverted clutches of doom nyah! I'll protect your honor, Ryuzaki-chan!" He proclaimed to the sleeping girl in his arms, oblivious to the anger radiating from his younger teammate.

Unaware of it all and undisturbed by the noise, Sakuno snuggled into Eiji's chest comfortably. Ryoma frowned at this and then scowled at his senpai. He was, probably, the most harmless senpai out of all eight of them, so he didn't feel like kicking something, unlike how he felt when Fuji-senpai and the buchou carried her, but he was still irritated at Eiji-senpai for his teasing.

Oishi relented. The faster they got the girl to the clinic and the faster they informed Ryuzaki-sensei, the better. He offered Echizen some reassurance before he left. "I'll be back as soon as I can. You guys know where the clinic is, right?" At their nods, he turned towards the direction of the faculty room in search of his sensei.

Thankfully, Kikumaru stopped teasing Ryoma until they reached the nurse's office. He was only having a little fun at the expense of his Ochibi. It was sort of a well-known speculation (because no one actually confirmed the fact and there was no love confession that anybody knew of – yet) that the girl had a slight crush on the young tennis prince, but Echizen didn't seem to be interested in anything else aside from tennis.

In his opinion, the two chibis looked good together. If his Ochibi found a girlfriend, then the girlfriend would automatically become one of his chibis… but only if she was cute enough to be deemed his chibi. His first and only choice was Ryuzaki-chan, since she was cute enough to be considered as one of his chibis. Truth be told, he wanted to induct her into his exclusive chibi hall of fame way before he got a chibi in the form of one Echizen Ryoma. He just didn't know if scary Ryuzaki-sensei was going to like him claiming Ryuzaki-chan as his chibi or if that was acceptable. He didn't want anyone to misinterpret his intentions.

He just wanted a chibi; a chibi that would act as his very own live teddy bear. A chibi to tease and dote upon from time to time, since he had no younger siblings to shower love and affection upon, being the youngest in his family.

Kami must have heard his prayer, because Echizen transferred to their school just as he was about to graduate from middle school. But no matter how cute and cuddly his Ochibi was, he just wasn't as cute as Ryuzaki-chan. Now her… she was _true_ chibi material.

If his Ochibi ever got around to it, Ryuzaki-chan would be his chibi, too. He saw how the girl chibi affected his Ochibi. She was the only girl capable of evoking non-tennis related emotions from his Ochibi. But his Ochibi was probably too young to consider things like love, relationships or helping him get a really cute chibi to add to his chibi army.

Aaah… but only if his Ochibi would realize it… he could imagine how ultra-chibily cute their chibi children would be in the future! And it would all be his! His chibis to dote and shower kawaiiness upon!

"Eiji-senpai?" Ryoma wondered why he had that dreamy look on his face. While Eiji was busy dreaming of chibis, Ryoma had explained what he knew of the situation to the school nurse.

Introducing herself as Nurse Michi, she prepared one of the beds and told the teenager who was holding the girl to put her down on the freshly made bed. That had been almost five minutes ago. The boy looked like he was busy with a very pleasant daydream before the shorter one interrupted it.

"Nyah, gomen!" Eiji set Sakuno down on the bed gently. Several items fell out of her pocket when he did. "Oops!"

"That's alright," Nurse Michi assured him. She gathered the items and placed them on the side table. Two red hair clips, several colorful rubber bands, a few pieces of gum, a pink wallet, and a pink cellphone with an adorable little doggy cellphone strap.

As the nurse removed the girl's shoes and loosened her uniform to make her a little more comfortable, Eiji reached for the cellphone to look at the strap more closely. "Kawaii nyah! Ne, Ochibi, isn't this just the cutest little doggy ever?" Ryoma scowled at it. "You don't like it? Maybe you're more of a cat person, nyah? And Ryuzaki-chan is a dog person? Hmmm… I like both but isn't this just the cutest little doggy strap ever!" The cellphone suddenly vibrated and then beeped once, startling him. He looked at the screen and almost screeched. "Ten new messages! Who would be sending Ryuzaki so many messages?" The girl had probably been feeling too sick to even check her messages all morning, that's why they've been accumulating.

Ryoma was tempted to snatch the cellphone away from his senpai and delete the messages, but he didn't. Before he could say something, the door to the clinic opened and their coach came huffing in, followed by Oishi.

"Is my granddaughter alright? What happened? Where did you find her? Is she sick? I told her she didn't need to come today but she was talking about some test she had to take. Oh my god, is she alright? What's wrong with her?" The worried grandmother hovered by the bedside.

"She's sleeping right now, Ryuzaki-sensei." The nurse on duty tried to assure her. "Can you tell me what happened prior to today? Did she show any signs that she was feeling ill that you could tell me?" Nurse Michi has never seen the tough tennis coach like this before. Among the staff members, most people both feared and admired the stern coach. She always looked so in control and in charge. Not right now though.

"She was absent yesterday," Ryuzaki Sumire told nurse Michi. "She had severe rashes on Sunday morning and the doctor told her to stay home on Monday. She was allowed to take Tuesday off too, if she wanted to or if her rashes were still bothering her greatly, but she insisted on coming to school today because of some test, she said." She frowned. As a teacher, she admired students who were determined to pursue their education no matter what. As Sakuno's grandmother, she was more concerned about her precious granddaughter's health rather than her grades. "She also said that her throat was kind of sore but we all thought it was because of the allergic reaction to the flowers."

Nurse Michi removed the thermometer from Sakuno's mouth and read it. Quickly and efficiently, she had a cold compress on the child's forehead as the tennis coach explained the cause of the rashes. Nurse Michi frowned. Something didn't fit right. "I think that her rashes covered for something else, Ryuzaki-sensei." As a nurse, she understood how symptoms could sometimes be misdiagnosed, even by the most experienced of doctors. Especially if there were factors that led you to believe that the patient was suffering a more visible illness.

"What do you mean, Michi-sensei?" Kikumaru was confused. Was Ryuzaki-chan severely sick or dying?

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Tomoka was worried.

Very, very worried.

The English test had come and gone but there was absolutely no sign of Sakuno. She took comfort in the fact that she had instructed her bestfriend to go to the clinic, so the logical conclusion she reached was that Sakuno was in the clinic resting.

When the lunch bell signaled the end of the morning classes, she dashed to the nurse's office but was met with an empty clinic. There was no nurse and there was no Sakuno to be found.

What happened to her friend?

Visions of Sakuno getting abducted by thugs or Sakuno injured and unable to get up somewhere in the school plagued her mind as she sought out the people who would probably know for sure where her friend was.

Thankfully, they were very predictable creatures of habit and she soon found them on the tennis courts.

"— So that's what happened nyah!" Kikumaru was finishing his tale just as Tomoka spotted her targets.

Ryoma's complexion was flushed. "I wasn't—" He looked like he was struggling with what words to say, most probably trying to keep from hurling obscenities at his senpai who twisted the situation into ridiculous proportions. He felt like he'd just molested Ryuzaki even though he was totally innocent. "It was the braids, I'm telling you—"

"Suuuuuuuuuuuuure," Kikumaru's tone was very condescending, "blame her braids, why don't you nyah?" He was having a lot of fun interrupting his Ochibi from defending himself. He has never seen the chibi so flustered before.

"But I honestly—"

"Next time," The light bounced off from the surface of Tezuka's glasses, but it wasn't enough to conceal the hard look behind them, "you should go ask for help instead of doing something that could be considered inappropriate."

Ryoma's complexion was rapidly turning from indignant red to barely contained purple rage. His teeth knocked together in an effort to keep from shouting at his captain who, he reminded himself repeatedly, he greatly admired and was prone to slapping insubordinate kouhais. "But I wasn't doing anything inappropriate—"

"Tezuka-buchou! Fuji-senpai!" The shrill noise was enough to create a supersonic boom to shatter windows. Yes, she was going to have a heartattack any minute now so forgive her if she can't control her vocal cords from being on max volume. She sprinted towards them in a hurry, garnering the attention of the students who were within the vicinity.

What was the president of the Ryoma Echizen fanclub doing now and why was she shouting?

"Osakada-chan, what's wrong?" Syusuke waited as the girl struggled to catch her breath. Most of the regulars and all the other members of the boys' tennis team were at the tennis courts, as usual. Ryuzaki-sensei was nowhere to be seen and Echizen, Oishi and Kikumaru were just explaining what happened when she came.

Or better yet, Eiji had just finished telling them an embellished version of the story while Oishi tried to tell it as accurately as possible and trying to calm the enraged chibi at the same time.

_Story of my life  
Searching for the right  
But it keeps avoiding me   
Sorrow in my soul  
Cause it seems that wrong  
Really loves my company_

"Moshi-hoi-nyah?" Kikumaru took the ringing cellphone out of his shirt pocket and answered without thinking. Oishi explained the situation again, not only for Tomoka's benefit, but for Kikumaru's as well. Echizen looked like he was mad enough to start chewing on the acrobatics master's head.

"Who is this?" A familiar male voice asked from the other end of the line. He sounded startled.

"Who is _this_?" Kikumaru asked back, a little affronted.

"I asked you first." The voice asked at the other end. Who was this person?

"But _you_ called _me_ first and I don't even know you!" Kikumaru was exasperated.

"I was calling Sakuno-chan." The person on the other end was getting as irritated as him. Did he dial the wrong number?

"Ah!" Kikumaru then realized whose cellphone he answered. After the chaos of everything earlier, he had all but forgotten to give the cellphone and the other things back to Sakuno. When the phone vibrated in his pocket, he just absentmindedly picked it up without thinking. "Gomen nyah! Yes this is Ryuzaki-chan's cellphone but she's not here right now." He didn't bother to read the caller ID before he answered the phone so he had no idea who he was talking to. "This is Kikumaru Eiji speaking, who am I talking to?"

"It's me, Kirihara Akaya." Akaya was befuddled. "Why is Sakuno-chan's cellphone with you, Kikumaru-san?"

"Ryuzaki-chan is sick and was rushed to the hospital." Kikumaru told him.

"WHAT!"

"Ryuzaki-chan is sick and was rushed to the hospital," Kikumaru repeated, thinking that the boy didn't hear him the first time. "Ochibi was getting cozy with her under the tree before Oishi and I found them then we had to rush her to the clinic and then her grandmother came and the nurse told her she had to go to the hospital so they did and I forgot to give her back her cellphone when it dropped from her pocket after she went to the clinic so I have it right now and I plan to return it when I visit her." The amount of ands and run-on sentences in his statement would send any grammar Nazi rolling in his grave.

"Ochibi?" His explanation further confused Akaya.

"Yeah, Ochibi was hugging her and stuff!"

"**WHAT!**"

"Ochibi was hugging her and stuff!" Kikumaru repeated again. Boy, when did Kirihara last clean his ears? Couldn't he hear what he was saying?

Akaya had a vague idea of who this 'Ochibi' Kikumaru was talking about and he wanted to question that hugging thing further but he was more concerned about Sakuno right now. Counting to ten really helped at times like these. "Is she okay? Why was she rushed to the hospital?" The last time he saw her was on Friday and aside from her foot, she seemed perfectly fine. "Was it because of her foot?"

"Her foot?"

"She was hit by Atobe on Friday and she was kind of limping. Did it swell?" Did her injury worsen over the weekend enough to warrant a trip to the emergency room? He was very confused.

"Atobe hit her?" Kikumaru didn't know this. He wasn't there on Friday. He heard bits and pieces about it, and he heard that Atobe— "Is that why he sent her flowers?" He frowned. He didn't like Atobe getting in the way of his plans to gain the cutest chibi of them all.

"Atobe sent her flowers?" Akaya almost growled into the cellphone. Why the hell was Atobe sending his Sakuno flowers?

"She was allergic to them though. It gave her rashes." Kikumaru added.

Akaya's brows furrowed even deeper. "So she went to the hospital because she was allergic to the flowers?" None of his conversation with Kikumaru was making sense. He was being fed bits and pieces that were further confusing him.

"Why are you calling Ryuzaki-chan anyway?" Kikumaru demanded, answering Akaya's question with one of his own. Was this boy trying to steal his potential chibi from his Ochibi? How many rivals did his Ochibi have?

Akaya answered, albeit a bit bewildered at how their conversation was turning out. "I've been sending her messages all morning and I haven't received any replies so I got kind of worried. I thought I'd wait until the lunch break to call her and check if she was okay." Why was he explaining all this to Kikumaru?

Before Kikumaru could say or ask more, Oishi grabbed the phone from him. He'd heard enough and took pity on the poor boy who was probably confused with the information that Kikumaru gave him. He found it odd that Kirihara of all people was calling Ryuzaki-chan's cellphone during a lunch break, but if they were close enough for him to do that then he was probably worried about the girl and Kikumaru's confusing conversation was probably worrying him more.

"Kirihara? This is Oishi. Ah, yes. See, Ryuzaki-chan was rushed to the hospital because she had a really high fever."

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Sakuno's rash that was caused by Atobe's tulips happened at a bad time and had **absolutely nothing **to do with why she was hospitalized right now. The rashes from the allergy had been severe, but were in NO WAY connected to Atobe or his flowers at all. Or at least that's what Sakuno believed.

It was just unfortunate that the weather probably broke down through her immune system and she was exposed to a sick Kazuma the day after that… and the flowers, of course, didn't help, because it gave her rashes… and then there was the stress for her English test and her lack of sleep… adding more to that, Sakuno didn't rest when she was specifically instructed to.

Everything just snowballed from one thing to another and now, on top of everything else, she was also severely dehydrated. Moderate dehydration may be treated orally, but severe dehydration requires intravenous fluids. Therefore, Sakuno had to stay in the hospital while she got re-hydrated through Intravenous therapy or IV therapy.

Parents worried too much especially if their child had to have a needle stuck in her arm to become healthy again. Thankfully, they were too worried to give her a sermon about how she should've taken better care of herself, so she didn't protest when she had to stay in the hospital until the doctor gave her a clean bill of un-dehydrated health again.

In an effort to console her, her parents brought one of her precious teddy bears to keep her company. It wasn't enough, but it was better than nothing.

Contrary to what Kikumaru believed or what was widely circulated in the gossip circuit, she didn't get her fever through Atobe's flowers. Tulips do not cause high fevers or dehydration. It was just really bad timing on Atobe's part that Sakuno's symptoms appeared right after the series of unfortunate incidents which started that Friday. Still, he made the perfect scapegoat, that when Kikumaru started blaming him, Tomoka jumped in as well and agreed with Kikumaru.

Given the perfect succession of events, even calm Syusuke was starting to believe it was the Hyotei's buchou's fault that the high fever had afflicted Sakuno. It was high enough to land her in the hospital.

Sakuno had an onslaught of visitors, even on the first day. Her fever was at its peak then, so she was half-incoherent during that time. The doctor advised them to return on the weekend, so as to give the girl some time to recover on her own before she had to entertain visitors, or if she really had to, to entertain only one or two at a time.

On the second day of her hospitalization, she woke up to a cheerful Kazu-nii by her bedside. Her fever had gone down from 103ºF to 101ºF. An IV was strapped to her arm to keep her hydrated. He explained how he was going to take care of her when her parents and grandmother weren't around. Her fever went down a couple of degrees, but the extreme headache, sore throat and some rashes remained.

On Thursday, Syusuke-nii came right after school to visit. It was partly out of the routine he had – Tuesdays and Thursdays without Sakuno were an alien concept to him – and he even brought her homework courtesy of Tomoka with him. He figured she'd be bored during the day and reading up on the material she was missing due to her absence wasn't going to hurt.

On Friday, her fever was gone and her very first visitor was Fujioka Haruhi, her long-time neighbor and childhood friend. She told Sakuno that her mom talked to her dad and told him about Sakuno's illness. Ranka, Haruhi's dad, was always busy with work, so when he voiced his concern about visiting the little girl in the hospital to bring her some fruit, Haruhi volunteered so that her dad didn't have to miss work.

It also gave her a great excuse to get away for the weekend at an earlier time, she explained to Sakuno. Apparently, Haruhi was a member of a club in their school and the other club members tended to pry into her more personal affairs. Visiting a sick friend in the hospital gave her a perfect excuse to be excluded from the club's shenanigans this weekend, and assured her a sense of privacy because it was going to be spent catching up with a friend.

She came straight from school and she was still wearing her uniform. Sakuno wondered why she was wearing pants instead of a skirt. Didn't girls in Ouran wear skirts like all the other schools? Since no one else was around, Haruhi confided to her the reason why.

School uniforms in the very exclusive private school cost something around three hundred thousand yen or three thousand dollars. Sakuno winced at the amount. Haruhi was able to go to Ouran because of a scholarship. As long as she kept her grades up and was the top student in her class, she got to go to Ouran free of charge.

The scholarship, however, didn't cover for the cost of the really expensive uniform. So, at the beginning of the school year, Haruhi wore pants and a shabby sweater that made her look like a boy. Especially when combined with her short hair and the thick glasses she was forced to wear earlier that school year.

See, the day before the school year started, a kid from their neighborhood stuck gum on Haruhi's hair. Her hair had been long and straight before, and Sakuno had admired it greatly. Haruhi thought it bothersome to painstakingly take the gum out of her hair, so she decided to just cut it all off. On her own. What it resulted to was a really shabby hairdo. Her father Ranka had also accidentally stepped on her contact lenses, so she had to wear these really thick eyeglasses instead. It covered her really huge, doe-eyes.

The whole school took one look at her short hair, thick glasses and shabby clothes and assumed she was a boy. Haruhi didn't bother to correct them because she didn't really care much about gender issues. So what if they thought her to be a boy?

While she was looking for a quiet room to study in one day, she stumbled upon the music room which was the base of operations for this club called "Host Club". This Host Club, Haruhi explained to Sakuno, was composed of six really good-looking guys who entertained women who had a lot of free time in their hands on their free time.

Haruhi accidentally broke a vase that they had intended to auction off to raise money and in order to pay it, she had to work for the Host Club. They assumed her to be a guy at first, one thing led to another and soon, they provided her with a school uniform for males. She didn't complain because she wanted to pay off her debt. The Host Club was for males only and if the only way she could pay off her debt by graduation was to work her butt off as a male, then she was going to do it.

After Haruhi finished with her story of how and why she was posing as a guy in her school, Sakuno's mouth had turned into a small "o". Haruhi then retold some of her adventures with weird rich people.

A little while later, the door opened and her cousin Kazuma came back. He brought with him a lot of bread and food. He was pleased to see that a friend of his cousin was visiting, so he listened with rapt attention to Haruhi's stories about this "Host Club".

The life of the wealthy fascinated him even if he was also rich now. That was because he didn't consider himself rich. He just got rich because of a brilliant scheme that Kanmuri cooked up.

After Haruhi ran out of stories, Sakuno asked him to regale them of stories about his adventures in the Monaco Cup and the very recent Yakitate 9 competition. Haruhi, being a lover of delicious food, knew about him and was clearly interested in what he had to say, so he told them of what his team had to endure.

When he came to Tokyo to apply for work in the famous Pantasia bakery, it started the sequence of events that made him the super famous baker that he is right now. He got hired by a smaller branch of Pantasia instead of the main branch at first, then he participated and won first place in the newcomer's battle which then allowed him to participate in the Monaco Cup in Monaco. He went against the world's top bakers there and Japan's win made his fame skyrocket tenfold. Aside from that, they won a lot of money from betting every single penny they had on themselves and had, literally, hundreds of millions of yen upon their return home.

Having won the coveted MVP Award of the Cup had his pictures plastered all over news papers, television shows and billboards upon his return, and his fame reached a higher status when he won the Yakitate 9 challenge that was broadcast on television. The win also ensured them sixty percent of the stock in the Pantasia Group of Companies which are worth billions of yen.

Still, he never changed. Having to grow up in a farm in the country kept him grounded despite all the success he's achieved.

He looked at life and people and judged them by their characters after getting to know them instead of how big their bank accounts were. That attitude was also shared by Sakuno and Haruhi, that's why the three got along so well in Sakuno's little hospital room.

After they ran out of stories to tell to each other, throats kind of raw and parched from talking too much, Haruhi pulled out a stack of cards and suggested that they play some card games. The cousins weren't opposed to this, so they did.

They were on their second round when someone knocked at the door again.

"Come in!" Kazuma said, concentrating on the cards that he held in his hand and the cards already exposed on Sakuno's bed. Currently, he was sitting on the foot of the bed, facing Sakuno. He was only wearing his socks on his feet so as not to dirty the hospital bed. Haruhi sat on a chair to the right side of Sakuno, elbows propped over the same bed, the same look of concentration mirrored on her face. Sakuno was sitting Indian style like her cousin, feet under the covers and bear on her lap. She was wearing baby pink pajamas with a matching top, her back propped up by several pillows.

The two boys who came in were totally ignored as the three players sized each other up. It looked funny, since the three of them were probably the most harmless people in Japan yet they were trying very hard to intimidate each other.

Sakuno couldn't intimidate a cowardly fly even if she practiced for several hundred years. "Kazu-nii do you have any fours?"

Kazuma grinned maniacally… or at least as maniacally as he could afford to look, seeing as how he had such an adorable face. "Go fish, Sakuno-chyan."

"Darnit!" Sakuno glowered and drew the top card from the pack. Then she remembered that they had new visitors. "Ah!" Her eyes widened in realization. "Atobe-san? Kabaji-san? Erm… what a surprise to see you..?" In the back of her mind, she was still a little wary of the Hyotei captain, but she was kind of used to him by now. He looked like he needed friends. Having a monologue with his tall shadow all the time must get old after a while. Kabaji, she sort of held a certain fondness to because he reminded her of a gentle giant. For a lack of anything else to say, she blurted out what was on her mind. "Why are you here?" Then she blushed, embarrassed that she asked such a rude question.

Atobe tore his gaze from her two visitors to look her in the eyes. "Ore-sama heard you were sick." His genius brain cannot develop a logical explanation as to why the girl would be hospitalized because of his apology bouquet, but the proof was right there – sitting on the hospital bed and playing with her cousin and some unidentified boy from Ouran. He recognized the uniform; he has several friends who go to school there.

His eyes slanted as he looked at the boy again, sizing him up. He was short and he looked a little too girly to be considered a real man. If their looks were to be compared, it wouldn't even be a fair fight. He was manly, the boy was not. He was tall; the boy was a short little fox. Even if he had a baby face that some girls might find appealing, he didn't look good enough to complement the girl with his looks. Together, side by side, they looked really… pretty… together. Real men did not look pretty. _Pretty_ is not a word that is supposed to be used to describe real men. What the little girl sitting on the bed needed was a guy who would be the yin to her yang, a masculine figure next to her feminine one, a winter to her summer, not another smooth baby face next to her already smooth baby face. He mentally coughed to clear his head. Like Tezuka, for example.

Yeah… he was getting worked up in behalf of his rival… that was all there is to it. After all, if someone tried to steal Tezuka's girlfriend away from him then it might affect his game. If that happened, who would he look forward to playing to then?

Haruhi blinked at the boy. He was glowering at her. Have they met before? Did she slight him on a previous occasion or something? She didn't normally care or even notice what other people were doing around her, but the cold stare through narrowed eyes that the new arrival was giving her was pretty hard to miss. And if she really did offend him in some way before, she thought it would be better if they cleared it up, since they were both friends with Sakuno. She smiled warmly. "Hi!"

Atobe's haughty scowl deepened.

Sakuno remembered her manners. "Ah! Atobe-san, Kabaji-san, this is my cousin Azuma Kazuma. I think you mentioned you've met him before?"

Kazuma turned to greet them. "You look familiar," he said to Atobe. He was really bad at names and had difficulty remembering people he's met but the boy really did look familiar. The other guy sort of reminded him of Koala.

"And this is my friend, Fujioka Haruhi."

Haruhi was confused. She could swear the boy's glower turned darker and darker every minute. She was starting to feel chills like the first time she met Nekozawa-senpai, the president of their school's Black Magic Arts Club.

"You go to Ouran?" Atobe inquired politely through gritted teeth. He can't stand the guy for some reason, and they've just met. He was sitting too close to the girl, in his opinion. He was practically sitting on her bed! Haruhi nodded. "Ore-sama has friends who go there," he continued.

Sakuno stiffened. If he knew people who went to Haruhi-neechan's school and if he found that she was a girl, she was going to get kicked out of her club and would have difficulty paying her debt. Oh no! "Haruhi-niichan just transferred there this year. He's really smart." The choice of masculine words to address the girl was deliberate.

Haruhi didn't mind, she was used to being thought of as a boy already and if this guy had friends in her school, it was probably best he didn't discover her true gender. "But it's only because of a scholarship," she smiled even more warmly, filling the room with kawaii vibes that wrecked havoc to most people in her school, regardless of gender.

Was he trying to say that not only was he cute but he was intelligent as well? The nerve of this guy… Wait. Why was he acting like this? What did this girly-looking boy ever do to him to warrant his animosity from the get-go?

"Um, Atobe-san?" Sakuno asked, distracting Atobe from having a staring match with Haruhi, in her most polite tone.

Atobe shook himself from his stupor, wondering why he's been feeling so off-balance lately. It was so _not_ like him. "Yes?"

"Would you like something to eat or drink?" She motioned to the assortment of food on the table at one end of the room.

Atobe looked from her face to the bear in her lap. "Thank you but ore-sama just ate." She didn't look like she was mad at him for landing her in the hospital. "How is your ankle doing?"

Sakuno's head tilted to the right. "It's fine."

Atobe knit his brows. "And your allergies?" He approached the bed cautiously and stood at the empty space across of the boy from Ouran. Kabaji felt it was safe enough to sit on one of the many chairs in the room.

"They've cleared up."

His perfect brows furrowed even further. "Ore-sama didn't mean to send you to the hospital with his apology bouquet. It was supposed to make up for the accident last Friday, not cause you more trouble."

Sakuno beamed at him. "That's alright, Atobe-san. At least now I know that I'm allergic to tulips."

Luckily, for Atobe, all the other occupants of the room, except for Kabaji, couldn't correctly spot and interpret the meaning behind significant blushes like he was sporting right now. And Kabaji couldn't see his face, so he was safe. He cleared his throat. "Well, nonetheless, ore-sama would like to express his deepest apologies that you landed in the hospital. Ore-sama was hoping to make it up to you somehow."

Sakuno looked confused. Haruhi slowly gathered the discarded cards and absentmindedly shuffled them while she listened to their conversation. Kazuma got off of the bed and walked over to get himself a drink. Then he took some of the bread he brought today and offered them to Kabaji.

Kabaji didn't want to be rude so he accepted. "Ossu," he said, and Kazuma smiled at him kindly before returning to spot on the bed.

"But you didn't send Sakuno to the hospital." Kazuma opened the soda can and took a full swig. Sakuno and Haruhi nodded in agreement. What was he talking about?

Atobe frowned. "Ore-sama heard from St. Rudolph's Mizuki himself who apparently heard from Fuji Yuuta who heard from Fuji Syusuke that you were hospitalized and apparently ore-sama is the culprit."

The three people surrounding the bed blinked curiously at him. Sakuno voiced out what they were thinking.

"Huh?"

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When Tezuka arrived with Fuji more than an hour later, they were welcomed with a peculiar sight.

Kabaji was quietly eating bread while sipping tea in one of the seats, and four people were playing cards on the bed. Sakuno still had her teddy bear on her lap, Kazuma was still seated in front of her on the foot of the bed, Haruhi was still on one side as she gathered the cards and started to shuffle it, and Atobe was seated across Haruhi, beside Sakuno, slicing a pealed apple into small bite-size pieces.

"Mou! It's unfair how Atobe-san keeps on winning!" Sakuno pouted at the Hyotei captain. She tried her very best each time but it was like he had sixth sense.

Atobe smirked while he finished slicing the apples and then placed the plate on the side table beside the girl. He wouldn't normally do such a mundane thing because his greatness would be wasted, but for some reason, he wanted to do this and didn't mind doing it for her. "Ore-sama cannot help it if luck is on his side." The truth of the matter was that his three would-be opponents were just really, _really _bad at hiding their emotions. He could read the expressions on their faces like an open book and he didn't even need to use his gift of insight to guess which cards they had.

"Arigatou, Atobe-san!" Sakuno took one of the slices and munched on it happily before she noticed the two new arrivals. "Mitsu-nii! Syusuke-nii!"

The ultra-pompous wall that was chipped away while Atobe was playing Go Fish with Sakuno returned with full force. He looked like a totally different person when he turned around and casually stood up. "Well, it's about time for ore-sama to get going then. Don't you think so too, Kabaji?"

Kabaji looked like he didn't want to go yet. "Ossu."

"But we just got here," Fuji exclaimed. "You're leaving already?"

"Ore-sama has been here for hours already," he exaggerated. In truth, he didn't expect to have so much… fun… while visiting and he didn't want to encroach upon Tezuka's territory more than he's already had.

"Ah, Tezuka, you came!" Kazuma beamed at him. "I heard from Kanmuri about last Saturday. Thank you very much for what you did!" His cousin had some really great friends, in his opinion. He already had great respect for Tezuka before, but what he did last Saturday just placed him in a higher pedestal in his mind.

Tezuka inclined his head slightly. "It was no trouble at all, Kazuma-san." He turned to greet Haruhi. "Fujioka-san." He wondered why she was dressed in a boy's uniform but he guessed he could ask Sakuno about it later on.

"Konnichiha, Tezuka-kun!"

What the – Tezuka knew the boy? Atobe's face never faltered. His hand itched to pat the girl on the head for some reason, but his self-control won and he refrained. "You'll think about my proposal?" At Sakuno's nod, he bent his head in acknowledgement and walked towards the door. Kabaji trailed behind him. "Tezuka, Fuji."

And faster than the speed of light, they were gone.

Fuji was curious. "Why was Atobe here?"

Sakuno ate another piece of the apple before she answered. "He heard from Mizuki-san and thought that he caused my hospitalization, so he came to see if I was okay… I think." Her brows crinkled.

Tezuka looked from the apple to her face. "What was that 'proposal' all about?"

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"Stay away from him, Sakuno. He's nothing but trouble." Tomoka announced in a serious tone of voice.

"He's not that bad, Tomo-chan. He means well. He's honestly a nice person if you think about it." Sakuno argued. "Well... he is! You just have to give him a chance," she added when Tomoka looked incredulous.

"He's bad news." Ann, for once, was in total agreement with Tomoka. "He's the son of the devil."

"Evil incarnate," Tomoka interjected.

"Heir of Satan."

"Fiendish barbarian."

"Hellspawn."

"The Omen."

". . ." Ann chewed on her lip thoughtfully, deep in thought, before she said "Prince of Darkness" and then smirked triumphantly. Tomoka wasn't going to have the last word, hah! Sakuno smiled painfully. Will the day when these two were going to get along peacefully ever going to come?

"He's evil," Tomoka stated, "plain and simple."

Ann nodded. "You shouldn't go and that's that."

Sakuno sighed. It was Saturday. Ann and Tomoka were free today. They both got permission to spend the night over. "He's not evil." Sakuno argued for the trillionth time. "He means well, he really does." The other two girls were totally unconvinced.

"Just because he's a little good looking doesn't mean that he can't do anything wrong." Tomoka took a sip of her coke. The only reason why she disliked Atobe right now was because he hit Sakuno with a tennis ball. He could be really arrogant at times, but that might be because he thought himself to be the most good-looking tennis player of all… or probably the best.

Ann shot her a disgusted look. "You think he's good looking? Ew."

"Well he is! Don't you think so, Sakuno?" The more Ann was arguing against Atobe, the more her dislike was going away. Anything Ann disliked was supposed to be okay in her book. Switching gears, she decided a complete turnaround was in order.

If it were just the three of them, alone in the room together, she would have readily answered the question. But alas, they weren't alone. Her hospital room had turned into some kind of hangout central and currently, she had a lot of visitors.

Her cousin Kazuma had stepped out earlier, after Syusuke and Tezuka shooed him away. He looked really haggard and tired. The two boys assured him that they would take care of his little cousin, and coaxed him into going home to get some sleep. He still felt responsible for 'infecting' Sakuno, even if it wasn't his fault, but the two boys managed to persuade him into going home to rest. He promised to return as soon as he awakened, but Sakuno insisted that he take a day off, so to speak. Her parents or grandmother kept her company every night, but they gave her a lot of space and felt safe enough to leave her during the daytime since she had a lot of young friends to keep her company. The adults didn't want to intrude upon the youngsters' fun time, and Kazuma was often always there anyway, so they felt it safe to leave Sakuno to his care.

In addition to Syusuke and Tezuka, Inui had also tagged along. He found that Sakuno's hospital room was a great strategic place to gather data and he planned to take full advantage of it. The amount of data he managed to gather so far was priceless, and he even brought a second notebook as backup just in case he ran out of space to write his precious data in.

No, she definitely couldn't answer that question truthfully. She couldn't lie either, so she kept quiet. "Anou…"

"Just admit it! He's cute." Tomoka hedged. "Okay, so he's not cute like Ryoma-sama kind of cute, but he's good-looking." She considered this for a moment, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Kind of like a ragged Yukimura combined with Tezuka-buchou, but with more ego."

"A lot of ego," Ann corrected.

"Yeah, but still…"

Sakuno wasn't the only one who had a large teardrop-shaped body of sweat hanging on top of her head. The lower part of Inui's face was hidden by his notebook and no one could see his eyes because of his glasses, so his barely veiled amusement was safely hidden as he scribbled away the data from their conversation.

Tezuka didn't know if he should feel insulted or flattered. Flattered because he was in the good-looking category or insulted because he was compared to Atobe.

Fuji was curious. "So who's more good-looking, Atobe or Yukimura?"

Ann answered without any hesitation. "Yukimura of course."

Tomoka snorted. "That's because you can't stand Atobe." Ann visibly shuddered in disgust. "If you look at it objectively though, he has a certain foreign flair to him. Yukimura looks too girly for my taste."

"Girly?" Fuji couldn't help but ask. He never would have pegged Yukimura to be girly, so the girls' perspectives were interesting.

"Yeah," Tomoka agreed, sighing dreamily. "I bet he'd look really good if he wore women's clothing."

"T-Tomo-chan. . ." Sakuno was amazed at how gutsy her friend was sometimes. Like now, for instance, Tomo-chan didn't seem to mind that Inui-senpai was taking down notes from their conversation.

"You think so too, right Sakuno?"

"T-Tomo-chan. . ." She didn't really want to answer that question. She hid behind Ichigo the teddy bear for protection.

"Ugh, why don't you tell her that her tastes are bad already?" Ann insisted. "You must be cross-eyed, if you find Atobe attractive. Ne, Sakuno?"

The two girls looked at her expectantly. "Um. . ." How was she going to get out of this mess? "They're both cute, in their own way." Okay so she decided to take the easy way out and not take sides. Who could blame her? "Atobe-san's attractiveness comes from his confidence."

"You mean his over-inflated ego," Ann interrupted.

Sakuno chose to overlook that remark, intent to defend the boy since he was kind enough to visit her yesterday. "He can't help being like that. He probably grew up to lots of people and servants used to calling him bocchama and thinking he could do no wrong."

"Damn rich bastards," Ann agreed. The only boys who were referred to as bocchama came from stinkin' rich families. Atobe was probably used to people waiting for him hand and foot all the time.

"But he's really a good person!" Sakuno hoped she was convincing Ann-chan, even just a little.

"You think that about everyone." The two girls said dryly. The other occupants of the room silently nodded in agreement. Sakuno was too naïve for her own good most of the time.

"But it's true!" Sakuno's eyes were so full of innocent wonder that none of them had the heart to tell her she was really gullible.

"And what about Yukimura?" Inui prodded. _Ii data!_

Sakuno didn't really know the guy much, but she didn't want to say anything bad about Akaya-kun's senpai either. Everyone watched the play of emotions on Sakuno's face as she struggled to find the right words to describe the guy she hardly knew.

There was a very soft knock on the door before it opened and in came Momo with Kaidoh and Kawamura. Momo was motioning his hand for the people behind him to come in with them.

"I think Yukimura-san is very handsome."

Several oranges and apples fell to the floor as Sakuno's statement hit him like a bolt of lightning. Sakuno's face flamed when she saw who the new guests were.

"A-Akaya-kun."

Oh my god. She wanted to die. Why didn't the earth open up and swallow her whole when she wanted to?

Akaya stood behind Momo slack-jawed from what he heard. The rest of his senpai-tachi was behind him since they invited themselves again this afternoon. He had been so antsy, not being able to text her properly, that he had been fidgeting all week. He wanted to come yesterday but they had practice. They also had practice earlier this morning. He lost the drive to protest and admitted defeat when all of his senpais ganged up on him, ribbing him about the fruits he was carrying. The trip had been short. The next thing he knew, they were inquiring what room Sakuno-chan was in on the front desk and they met Momo and his senpais in the hallway. Momo lead them to the room and was the one who knocked softly. They all entered just in time to hear Sakuno's thoughts on Yukimura's good looks.

Akaya was torn between shaking Sakuno-chan and demand that she take back what she said or punching his buchou for having a face that Sakuno-chan would consider 'handsome', just to see if she'd have the same idea if he was sporting a bruised chin and a cut lip. Since he couldn't do either of the two, he felt like screaming instead.

Yukimura was perfectly calm. Oh how his kouhai entertained him. Seigaku was a never-ending source for amusement as well. He didn't know what he did to attract the girl's attention though. He wasn't afraid of Kirihara going ape-shit bananas on him, but he silently prayed for one of the other guys on his team to say something to break the awkward silence.

Inui was having a field day and even though Renji was new to the drama unfolding, he was busy scribbling notes, too. All the Rikkai Regulars were curious about 'Kirihara's little girlfriend' so they tagged along today.

Sakuno looked to her two bestfriends for help. "Anou. . ."

"Heh," Tomoka said. "Hehehehehehe…" she tried to stifle her laughter by biting her bottom lip but it didn't help one bit. Soon Ann was laughing with her and Sakuno was as red as an apple. She had to admit it was funny, but she just couldn't find it in her to laugh right now. Tomoka tried to talk in between fits of giggles. "Sakuno, you have the worst timing ever. I told you that you should've picked Atobe instead!"

Sakuno didn't hide her face behind her palms like she wanted to, but she hugged her teddy bear tightly. She wanted to hide under the covers.

Akaya picked up the fruits he dropped on the floor and his senpai-tachi disbursed themselves in the room. It was getting kind of crowded and the tension was so thick, it was almost electric. If this was some anime like Bleach, Naruto or Dragonball, you would be able to see the fighting aura that enveloped some of the occupants of the room.

But it's not, so it's a moot point. It was still damn awkward, either way.

Kikumaru unwittingly broke the awkward silence a second later when he barged in with Oishi and an Echizen who looked more like his hostage than anything else. "Nyah Chibi-musume, how are you today?" He had one arm tightly gripping his Ochibi as he waved with the other enthusiastically.

"Chibi-musume?" Fuji questioned. It was the first time he's heard Kikumaru refer to Sakuno-chan as his chibi daughter. "Since when did Sakuno-chan become your daughter?"

"I got tired of waiting for Ochibi to make her my chibi so I'm taking matters into my own hands." Nobody could understand his logic but they pretended like everything he just said made perfect sense. Luckily for him he seemed oblivious to the tension hanging in the air. "Would you like me to peel an orange for you, Chibi-musume? Ochibi, why don't you peel an apple for her and cut it into little pieces, nyah?" He approached the bed and sat down on one of the chairs nearest to it.

"Aaah… thanks, Kikumaru-senpai. You don't have to do that, Ryoma-kun." Sakuno avoided looking at Ryoma-kun. She was in her pajamas, for crying out loud! Why was Ryoma-kun here! _This is so embarrassing!_

"Yeah, Tezuka and I brought some pretzels." Fuji unwrapped the package they brought and passed one to Sakuno, got one for himself and passed it to Tezuka who passed it around the room.

There was another knock on the door before a uniformed nurse peeked in. "My," her eyes widened at the amount of visitors her patient had, "you have a lot of visitors today, Ryuzaki-chan." She carried a shallow cup with some pills and was here to check on the patient's IV. "It's time for your medicine. Uh…" She paused, looking at the visitors in the room.

"I need to go to the bathroom." Sakuno pinked considerably after making that statement.

"Do you need help standing up, Sakuno?" Ann asked.

"I'll do it," the nurse volunteered. It was part of her job.

Sakuno shook her head. She was able to stand up fine with a little help from the hospital nurse. "No thank you, Ann-chan. I'll be right back." They locked the bathroom door behind them, and the others couldn't hear much of anything, since the exhaust fan drowned out the conversation from the inside.

"So. . ." Fuji decided to break the silence.

"So," Yukimura echoed. The hot glares that Kirihara were throwing his way were starting to get old.

"So," Inui repeated for the third time, "you're all here to visit Ryuzaki-chan?"

"Yup," Bunta answered confidently. This wasn't his first time stalking or imposing himself on Kirihara so there was no need for them to imitate foliage anymore. "We were worried Kirihara might fall asleep on the way here or get lost or something."

Akaya glowered at his redheaded senpai but kept his mouth shut.

Ann and Tomoka started a decent conversation about their friend who was in the bathroom. Something about how only Sakuno could go from a sprain to extreme allergies to high fever and dehydration within a week. It then drifted into what Sakuno's finer points are, when Fuji intervened a little and inserted "But she's not always this unlucky. She's lucky, too, isn't she?"

The girls then began to sing their friend praises, almost as if they were in some kind of competition on who was capable of finding Sakuno's kawaii points best. They sounded like they were the ones who gave birth to Sakuno or something; like a couple of proud mamas.

Inui continued to take notes of their conversation, scribbling madly against his notebook. Renji was also taking notes, but more discreetly. Fuji ate another pretzel while Akaya got distracted from glaring at his captain. Tomoka and Ann's conversation about his Sakuno-chan were distracting him from his jealousy.

With nothing else to do, Ryoma also listened to Ann and Tomoka's talk. But it was only because he had nothing else better to do. And that was that.

Niou had a wicked look on his face; he was already imagining the things he could do to his kouhai to torture him. Bunta, Eiji and Momo found the stash of fluffy JaPans Kazuma brought earlier and began to eat them. Yukimura and Fuji ate pretzels, smiling all the while. Kawamura tried to engage Kaidoh, Yagyuu and Jackal in conversation, but they weren't very cooperative. Oishi was the only one who replied to any of his questions or laughed at his jokes.

Tezuka looked a little bored. His staring match with Sanada wouldn't be what you would actually consider 'entertaining'. In an effort to distract himself, he picked up the remote and started surfing channels. He stopped at one channel where a familiar theme song was playing and put the remote back down.

Almost in synch, everyone turned to the respected buchou of Seigaku, then to the television show, and back to the buchou again. He didn't look like he was playing a joke on them. In fact, he looked really serious, like he always did.

"Uh. . ." Oishi couldn't find the right words to form the question he wanted to ask.

Kikumaru didn't have the same reservations. "Tezuka you still watch Power Rangers?" Momo and Bunta beside him looked just as incredulous. They weren't the only ones. Even Kaidoh was looking at his buchou like he'd just sprouted wings.

"No."

Kikumaru looked at the television screen displaying the opening theme song of the popular children's show and back to Tezuka's face again. "Then why is it on TV?" Of all the shows to watch and all the channels he surfed through earlier, he had to pick this one why?

"Because it's Saturday." Tezuka answered in a clipped voice.

The bathroom door opened and Sakuno stepped out, assisted by the nurse. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the TV screen and the smile that graced her face lit the room up. "Power Rangers!" You could hear the excited squeal in her voice as she clapped her hands together in glee before climbing back on the bed. The nurse rolled back her IV carrier to its original place and quietly left the room when she finished her duties.

"Oh yeah," Tomoka said, almost as an afterthought, "Sakuno still loves to watch Power Rangers." She didn't hate it, but she wasn't as obsessed with it like she was a few years ago. Her little brothers liked to watch it, though. That's why they got along so well with Sakuno.

Ann outgrew Power Rangers a long time ago, but she found it adorable that Sakuno still loved watching it. Sakuno, to her, was like a little duckie. She was still awkward most of the time, but she was cute all the same.

It's widely known in Japan that even though children and adults alike loved to watch anime, only the younger audience is targeted by live-action mecha shows like Power Rangers. People like Tezuka didn't watch shows like the Power Rangers. Sakuno clearly did. But the intrigue wasn't about Sakuno still liking Power Rangers at her age. Some of them (like Akaya) found that to be actually cute.

No, the question was did Tezuka know that Sakuno still loved to watch Power Rangers and purposely surfed through the channels for her sake or was he just bored and everything was just a coincidence? Tezuka didn't look like he was going to provide them any answers soon, so they had no choice but to drop the subject.

"So. . ." Niou didn't even contain the grin that graced his face as he spoke. He was looking at Kirihara specifically. "Power Rangers, huh?"

Akaya glowered at his senpai. "Yeah, so?"

"Do you like the Power Rangers, Kirihara?" Bunta couldn't help himself.

"I bet I know which Ranger is his favorite."

Akaya didn't reply to his Niou-senpai because he didn't want to say that Power Rangers were for kids (it might hurt Sakuno-chan's feelings), but he also didn't want to defend the Power Rangers because he would never be able to live it down. He settled for glowering at his senpais instead.

"Oh yeah? Let me guess…" Bunta scratched his chin, as if he had some kind of imaginary beard. "Does he like… the Pink Ranger?"

"Hey that's Sakuno's favorite, too, isn't it Sakuno?" Ann added her input to what she thought was a serious conversation. Everyone who wasn't focused on the show discreetly coughed into their hands to cover their amusement.

Ryoma, who was all but forgotten at this point, (in favor of the Power Rangers), glared at all of them.

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The next day...

"Please, please, please, Kamio-kun?"

"No."

"Pretty please with a puppy on top?"

It was difficult, but he managed to hold on to his stern frown. "Absolutely. Not."

Oh gods no, please not the puppy dog eyes. Sakuno's hazel eyes widened some more, shining with hope.

"NO." He repeated, more for himself rather than the big brown eyes pleading at him. "No means no, Sakuno-chan." He crossed his arms across his chest and strengthened his glare for show. Hopefully, it was enough to intimidate her.

Apparently, it wasn't.

He could literally feel his resolve melting away. She blinked twice for effect.

_Damn it!_ "No."

Sakuno's bottom lip quivered. Her eyes began to water a little. Those two things combined with her vulnerable look in the middle of a hospital bed wearing nothing but her pink puppy night clothes was his undoing.

"Arg! FINE!" On the tennis court, he was the master of the rhythm. Faced with Sakuno's puppy dog eyes, he was nothing but a soggy piece of milk toast. "But you can't tell anyone about it!" He warned. He frowned fiercely to look intimidating but she didn't look one bit intimidated.

"I promise I won't tell anyone about it." Sakuno was happy as a clam. "And you can't back out! You promised me and you have to fulfill it when I'm well enough."

Kamio merely sighed in defeat and accepted his fate. He was no match for a little girl who was half his size in a hospital bed.

"We're going to have so much fun!"

He seriously doubted he was going to have any kind of fun, but he didn't dash her hopes. When Shinji finally returned from his trip to the vending machine, Kamio glared at him. It was Shinji's fault for leaving him alone and vulnerable to the pleading puppy eyes of Sakuno. If his friend didn't leave him alone in the room with the girl, he wouldn't have been so weak against it. Arg!

Shinji did a double-take at the fierceness of the glare that his friend shot him. He handed him his Dew and handed the grape Ponta to Sakuno.

"Arigatou, Shinji-kun!"

"Aa," he replied, keeping an eye on Kamio at the same time. His friend looked like he wanted to jump up and strangle him. "Did I interrupt something?" He felt like he missed something significant when he went out of the room; significant enough to warrant Kamio being mad at him. He couldn't recall anything he did to irritate his buddy lately, so he was at a total loss.

"No," Sakuno's Ponta sizzled as she popped it open. She looked perfectly content as she took a long sip.

Shinji frowned back at Kamio. He didn't know why his friend was mad at him but he wasn't going to let his unpleasant demeanor upset him. "So anyway," he turned to Sakuno, "is it true that Atobe came here the other day? I heard from Ann-chan. Or was it this weekend? It was around Friday, so it was the weekend…" He mumbled off.

Sakuno nodded. "He thought he was responsible for my being here, isn't that odd?" She told them what she heard from the Hyotei buchou.

Shinji shook his head. "That's what he gets for listening to gossip. People shouldn't trust gossip so much. Most of it isn't true anyway…" Sakuno reached out to pat his hand as he mumbled about the injustices that gossip and gossip mongrels did to society today.

Kamio heard from Ann-chan that Atobe sent some 'tulips of doom', as the younger Tachibana sibling had dubbed it, to their friend, causing her to break out in severe rashes before her fever and dehydration appeared. For a guy who liked to brag about his supposed-awesomeness and had legions of girls tripping all over their skirts to get to him, he sure didn't stand a chance against winning the affections of Sakuno-chan that easily.

Maybe he was secretly a piece of soggy milk toast, too.

That thought made Kamio feel a whole lot better. It was enough to get rid of that feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach for that promise he made earlier. Having reached a decision that the pompous peacock, as Ann-chan had dubbed him, was also nothing but milk toast, he immediately began to feel better.

"So," Shinji said in that very unexciting tone of voice of his, "I heard you had to walk Osakada-chan that day. Did anything significant happen?"

Or at least his _former _friend turned on him.

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"Oshitari-senpai!" Yuushi paused and waited for his kouhai to catch up to him. "I have those details I told you I'd get from my cousin." Yuushi looked a little confused. He didn't know what Choutarou was talking about. "You know… about Atobe and those flowers..?"

"Oh." Yuushi suddenly remembered their conversation. And why was Choutarou telling him this..?

"Uh… let's see…" Choutarou pulled out the paper where he wrote the details he got from Kyouya-niisama last night. Since they surprisingly had practice this Sunday, he thought he'd wait until after the training to give them to his senpai. "Ah! There it is. Um… a dozen, no wait, TWO dozen tulips to one Ryuzaki Sakuno." He read the contents of the paper to his senpai.

"_Two dozen tulips_?" Yuushi turned to look at Atobe who was currently talking to their coach. "Ryuzaki… why is that name familiar..?" His brows furrowed in thought.

"What are you frowning at, Yuushi?" Gakuto peered at his doubles partner curiously as he joined up with his partner.

"Does the name Ryuzaki ring any bells for you?" Yuushi asked.

Ryou, who managed to catch that question just as he joined their conversation, closed the cap on his water bottle before he answered. "Isn't that the name of Seigaku's coach?"

Choutarou also had an epiphany. "Oh… yeah… I wonder if she's related to Ryuzaki-sensei?"

"Does this mean that Atobe sent flowers to some girl from Seigaku and," Choutarou swallowed, "he's courting someone from Seigaku? But… uh… why? What's so special about her?" Atobe had an army of fangirls in Hyotei alone. None of them received any two dozen flowers from him before. Or at least, not to any of his knowledge.

"Aren't you jumping to conclusions?" Shishido gently reprimanded him.

Choutarou looked guilty. "Ah… you're right, Shishido-san. I mean… Atobe sending a girl flowers doesn't mean he's courting her. I mean… it was Suoh's idea, so Atobe wouldn't uh… wouldn't really be courting anybody if Suoh was the one who suggested it… or something." He looked a little confused at his explanation.

"Maybe we could ask Kabaji. He'll know, won't he?" Gakuto suggested. All four of them glanced at Kabaji who was standing off to one side, waiting for Atobe to finish his conversation with their coach.

Yuushi cleared his throat. Since he was the genius in their team, he figured it was his duty to inform his teammates about certain things in life. "Did you know that the significance of tulips in general mean fame, charity or," he adjusted his glasses, "can be considered as a declaration of love?"

When the other three shook their heads, he continued. "Red tulips could mean 'believe me' or a more specific declaration of love; variegated tulips mean that he finds the receiver's eyes beautiful; and yellow tulips signify a hopeless love." He let his three companions process those before he went on. "Atobe sent _two dozen_. Chou, did your cousin specify what color they were?"

Choutarou was openly gaping at his senpai. "Um," he turned to the list to see if it was there, "a mix of red and yellow. What does that mean?"

"Believe me, even if it's a hopeless love?" Gakuto snickered. "Maybe she has a boyfriend already." Wouldn't that be poetic justice? Atobe finally falls in love but the girl is already in love with someone else. He who has legions of fangirls can't get the one girl that he finally fell in love with.

"Maybe he's unaware of the meaning behind what sending tulips meant." Shishido was the voice of reason. He didn't know about the significance of the flower and flower color meant until five minutes ago either. What kind of guy cared about these things anyway? He looked at their team's genius.

Yuushi shrugged. "Perhaps," he allowed. There was always that possibility. "If Atobe did it through Ohtori Kyouya through Tamaki Suoh's advice, there's that probability that he doesn't know about it."

"We could ask him." Choutarou suggested.

"You do it." Gakuto prodded.

"No way!" Choutarou ardently disagreed. "You do it!"

"Why'd you suggest it if you weren't going to do it in the first place?" Gakuto raised a brow at him.

"I was just giving you an option…"

"Hush," Shishido elbowed him, "Atobe's coming."

"Hey guys," Atobe greeted the other members of his team, Kabaji was behind him, an ever-present shadow. "I talked to Sakaki-sensei and he thought it was a great idea…" He never noticed the varying looks on his teammates' faces. "Do you have any plans for this coming Golden Week?"

**(o)-(o)  
(-'.'-)  
(")o(")**

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You know that running theme in KagSess where Sesshoumaru's a businessman and Kagome works for him as his secretary? Um… wouldn't that work for an AtoSak fic/gets bricked by Ate Yumi/ Aray po! XD Okay, okay! Stop trying to kill me! Jeebus! XD Ummm… Saiunkoku with a fairytale kingdom twist would do nice for RyoSak… _I guess_. 8P  
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**Musume **– daughter (It's the Tamaki in me)

**Disclaimer:** Bunny points for you if you recognized Rihanna's Unfaithful lyrics… because that guy playing the piano is hot. Nurse Michi is not mine. XD She's a cameo of **Michi29**, lol. She's the only OC in this fic so far and I have her permission. Hehe! (Uwah, I wanted to be the nurse! XD … maybe I'll just be some vendor next time… hehe!) All the other characters are property of whoever owns PoT, Ouran, Hikaru no Go, Spiral and Yakitate! Japan which are all very good animes. You should try watching them. Mwahahaha!

Here's a reference, just in case:  
**Hikaru no Go:** Touya Akira, Shindou Hikaru _with mentions of _Touya Kouyo  
**Spiral:** Eyes Rutherford (_and I only mentioned them by hair color but the redhead and the brown-haired teens were_ Asazuki Kousuke and Ayumu Narumi)  
**Yakitate! Japan:** Azuma Kazuma, Kawachi Kyousuke, Kanmuri Shigeru, Kinoshita Kageto _with mentions of_ Asugawa Tsukino, Matsushiro Ken, Meister Kirisaki (and his peacock), the Hashiguchi Yakuza**2**, some members of the Azuma family, Koala aka Panda  
**Ouran Highschool Host Club:** Ohtori Kyouya, Fujioka Haruhi _with mentions of_ Tamaki Suoh, Ranka, _hints of _Mori, Honey, Nekozawa and the twins.

**2** I swear Eiji's deranged penguin antics in chapter 3 came waaaaaaay before I found out Kanmuri's connection to his dad's Yakuza. But it's a really great koinkidink! I should find ways to exploit that in the future. Mwehehehehe! Lucky!

I sat on this for more than ten days after it was done because I wasn't happy with how it turned out. I had to rewrite it three times before I realized… I have difficulty finishing a chapter whenever I take it too seriously. Gyah! I need to just make it as cracky as I could and ignore canon. XD To me, this fic is crack because where else could you find all these anime characters together in one setting or Atobe eating cake in the park or Tezuka making a bear? And I don't think it's possible to be serious when YJ is involved, especially if combined with PoT. XP And er, I don't know much about medical mumbo jumbo even if I researched it a bit on the internet. I mostly just made it up as I went, so I really don't know what I'm talking about and I'm not claiming to be an expert on it. So don't get all technical on me. /sweatdrop/

I typed as much background as I could for the other characters I borrowed from the other animes on this chapter. I hope it clears things up for those who haven't seen YJ or Ouran… nantoka.

The meaning of what color the tulips were from **Kei**. She told me about it and I had to steal it for this chapter. XD I didn't know those until she told me. Don't you just love lucky koinkidinks? 8D Thanks Kei! 8D I hope… you liked the Hyotei-ness of the chapter. 8P

ROFL and thank you for all of you who were concerned for the bunnies last chapter! Keep the bunnies alive kudasai! I'll let you pet a bunny if you review. O.O

**Erizo** – /waves back with both feet/ NUUU! Don't make him eat all the cotton candy/weeps/  
**Phoe2k** – It makes sense? Hehe! XD I think you might be the only one who thinks so. /pets you and preserves you in a pink jar/ My precious!  
**Michiko Yokisama** – Yes! Brain melt good. And gomen for those mistakes! 8);;  
**Angel** – Teehee! I think that's a job for Atobe! Bwahahahahaha! I don't know about Tezuka and Sakuno yet. Maybe in the future… 8D  
**Umi** – Mwahahahaha! ☺  
**chibi neko-chan** – make up your mind! 8P  
**sasusaku4ever** – Thank you! ☺  
**Saiya** – Wai, you're my 300th reviewer/throws confetti at you/  
**Ganko22** – Malayo pa bago ibalik nya ang diary siguro. Ehehehe!  
**Hieiashke** – Syempre/evil grin/ At wah… gusto ko makita ang hamtaro version nila!  
**Melissa** – Don't worry, I'll tell him. I think I'm getting coal this Christmas. XD  
**Ate Yumi, iska ng bayan** – I am not weird, shannaro! I'm normal just like everyone else! XD You're the weird one around here/gets bricked/ XD**  
Kei** – I have four words for you: Shibuya Yuuri Harajuku Fuuri. XXXXXDDD OMG /twitch/**  
thinapasaway** – I'm seriously thinking about it. It's really hard not to do it, but I'm still resisting… at least for now. XD

**Constructive criticism, suggestions, complaints and death threats **from friends and pretty people **are loved and very much appreciated**. But only if you're friendly and only if you're pretty. The bunnies are scared of ugly meanies. ¬¬


	13. Shibuya Yuuri Harajuku Fuuri

♫ ♥ 07/19/06 ♥ ♫

**( )-( )  
(-'.'-)  
(")-(")**

There's a link to an online **Jap-Eng dictionary** in my profile.  
Do you guys know the rules of **Equivalent Exchange**?  
I blame the first half of this chapter on **Kei**. XD **Arigatou**!  
I typed most of this while I felt squishy with my period… **Enjoy**?  
Get well soon, **Zan**-san! ♥

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_Dear Daniel Radcliffe,_

_How have you been? It's been awhile, hasn't it? A lot of stuff happened since my fever went away. Hmmm… let's see. Did I tell you that Atobe-san invited us for over to his private hot springs for Golden Week? It's not like I **don't** want to go because who wouldn't want to go on a very relaxing vacation to a hot spring resort, ne? I just don't want to feel like I'm taking advantage of Atobe-san's goodwill. _

_At first the invitation for me, Mitsu-nii and whoever I wanted to bring along. When I repeatedly refused because I really didn't want to take advantage of him, Atobe-san extended his invitation to the whole Seigaku tennis team and even went so far as to tell Obaachan about it. Obaachan was easily won, of course. Anything that was good for the tennis team is always okay in obaachan's book. Kyaa! How embarrassing! And she's not even going! She says she "trusts" Atobe-san would take care of his guests even without her acting as chaperone and with the amount of servants he has, he doesn't really need an additional chaperone. Obaachan says she'll just get in the way of kids having fun._

_sigh_

_Ann-chan is… not pleased. Her family made plans for Golden Week. She and Kippei-no-niichan have to go with their parents on a family vacation. Uwah! I guess it's somewhat good this way. It's almost like fate. Ann-chan does **not** like Atobe-san. Her whole face morphs into stone whenever he's around or whenever anybody mentions his name. Poor Atobe-san. I should get him a thank you gift._

_I asked Shinji-kun to come but he has plans with his family, too. Aaah… it would be nice to spend time with family… my parents are surprisingly very accepting about this. Hmmm… as if they can't wait to get rid of me. Maybe they're planning a wild party at the house when I'm gone. O.o_

_Tomo-chan is psyched and I'm also psyched for her. Hehe! And no, Daniel Radcliffe, this is NOT an evil grin on my face! Well… okay it is, but don't tell anyone, okay? Why, you ask? That's because… I invited Kamio-kun and he agreed! He's very agreeable these days. I'm excited to do that thing when we get the time. Mwahahahahahahahaha! cough Okay… he had no other choice but to agree. He's very weak against my begging skills and I only used them because I noticed how Tomo-chan has been texting him a lot lately. Hmmmm… he avoided our questions about what happened that time he had to walk her home and I'm suspicious. If nothing happened, why is he so defensive about it? Hm. Suspiciouuuuuuuuus! I think it's time for yours truly to put her matchmaking skills to work, Daniel Radcliffe! _

_I'm fairly confident that Momo-senpai and Ann-chan are meant to be together. Since Ann-chan cannot come with us on Golden Week, I will just have to create more chances for Momo-senpai to be together with Ann-chan in a date-like setting without making them realize that they're actually dating! Hmmm… I think I need a helper, Daniel Radcliffe, but I'm confident that I can pull this off. Call me Ryuzaki Sakuno, Cupid Extraordinaire. _

_So before Golden Week starts, let Operation Tomo-Kam and Momo-Ann commence!_

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She waited until the right time before she pounced. Armed with a few bentos of varying sizes, two thermoses and carefully wrapped pieces of dessert, she delayed her ambush until there were only a few students left in the classroom. The lesser witnesses there were, the smaller the chances were of her being caught or anybody else being privy to it.

He knew he was in for a world of trouble when he spotted the long braids that swished behind her when she opened the classroom door and attempted to quietly peek in. He sighed, stood up and politely excused himself from a clingy female classmate who was attempting to engage him in pointless conversation – something about having lunch together – and walked towards the girl. He needn't have said anything since he could read almost every thought running through her mind.

"Have you had lunch yet, buchō?" He didn't reply but she was an expert in reading his facial expressions by now. "I brought you lunch. Where would you like to eat it?" Again, he didn't reply verbally but he took the containers from her and led the way to the roof. Lots of people gave them curious looks on the way but he was used to it.

There was no one on the rooftop when they arrived. They picked the only shaded spot and Sakuno started to unpack the bentos. His mouth started to water as she did. As always, his bento was bigger than hers and he was happy to find one of his favorites in it. Yup, she was up to something alright.

"Do you like it?" She asked as he took a bite out of the stir-fried eel. He hummed in contentment as he reached for the sweet omelette. She beamed at him and offered him some stuffed squid, which he readily accepted. Oh she was up to something alright. If he were to guess what was for dessert, he would say melon bread.

They ate for several minutes in silence, just enjoying each other's company. Not a lot of students came up to the roof during lunch time, preferring to spend it on the school grounds or cafeteria, so they were left unbothered. She'd sneak him a little peek out once in a while to judge his reactions, when he couldn't contain his equanimity.

"Sakuno." He didn't mind her way of softening him up every time she wanted to ask a favor from him. It was sweet and so very Sakuno to cook his favorite food and put on those puppy dog eyes before she swooped in for the kill each time. He was used to it by now.

"Hai, Mitsu-nii?"

Those puppy dog eyes are going to be his downfall someday, he was sure of it. "Did you need something?"

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Why did Ryuzaki spend so much time with Buchou? He wondered about that all throughout the second half of the day and was still wondering about it when he stepped into the courts during practice that afternoon.

Why?

Because the one day he decided to forego sleeping in the shaded treetops, favoring climbing up to the rooftop for some alone time instead was the day that Ryuzaki decided that she was going to have lunch with Tezuka-buchou there.

Coincidence?

He thought not. The girl could read minds. That was it. Those ridiculously long braids allowed her to read minds and she could clearly read his. Those braids probably acted as radar that could track him down from the ends of the earth and she was probably sent by someone to torture him this way.

It was bad enough that he could smell their fragrant lunch all the way in his position from the structure on top of the door and behind the water tower, but he didn't have the chance to hear most of their conversation since they spoke in hushed tones. As if what they were talking about was a secret and he wasn't worthy enough to be privy to it.

Arg!

The girl was a menace. Everywhere he went, she was there.

With her braids… and her bento.

Taunting him.

He was hungry. He didn't get to eat lunch because he didn't feel like it before, but he was starving by the time the duo finished their delicious-smelling lunch on the rooftop.

Why did Ryuzaki make a bento for buchou? Why… why did he feel like someone punched him in the gut whenever they had those odd moments where he'd catch Seigaku's stone-faced captain actually show some kind of emotion to their sensei's granddaughter? Eiji-senpai officially lost his marbles after Ryuzaki got admitted to the hospital. Ever since she got back, the redhead proclaimed himself to be Ryuzaki's father. He openly glomped her in hallways, even going as far as to twirling her around like a proud parent would whenever the senior would find something cute about her.

His senpai was totally invading Ryuzaki's personal space and she didn't really seem to mind. She allowed their senpai to do it like a daughter would to a doting father. He found that he didn't mind Eiji-senpai's newest chibi addition either. The less Eiji-senpai showered him attention and the less he gave him those death-glomps, the better life was for him.

The buchou didn't even do anything to even remotely invade Ryuzaki's personal space at all yet… ah. It was different. He felt… If he were to put it into words, the closest he could think of was 'threatened'. Which was, of course, ridiculous. He didn't feel _threatened_ by Tezuka Kunimitsu _at all_. Sure he respected the guy when it came to tennis and other things… he was older by him by two years, after all, but did he feel threatened by his own captain?

_Of course not_, he mentally snorted.

The thought was laughable. Crazy. Insane. Daft. Comical. Foolish. Stupid. Wacko. Two fries short of a happy meal.

That nagging voice in the back of his head had better shut up and stop thinking about that clenching feeling in his gut. Or else.

He was just concerned for Ryuzaki, is all. The girl still watched Power Rangers, for crying out loud. Wasn't it the buchou himself who told them to keep an eye on Ryuzaki and keep her out of harm's way? Wasn't he the same guy who subtly suggested that they help ward off any potential unscrupulous boys from their sensei's granddaughter? Wasn't he the same guy who said that she didn't know how to take care of herself so they had to do it for her?

If so, then what was he doing smiling at her like that? What was he doing eating her bento like that? Ryuzaki hasn't even offered him any of her homemade bentos ever since That Incident. Horio took great pleasure reminding him of That Incident, yet he still couldn't see how Ryuzaki would misinterpret his comments about how a game on the tennis court was turning out to a comment about her bento.

Girls were too sensitive. Ryuzaki more than ordinary girls. One little comment would often send her crying. It was cute, but it made talking to her really difficult.

"Echizen."

She didn't seem to have the same problem talking to anyone else… especially to Tezuka-buchou. Why was that? Did she think he was mean to her or something? But that was absurd! Sure he wasn't the friendliest person in the universe, but he wasn't unfriendly to her either. If she could be friends with buchou, who had the personality of a rock, then why can't she be friends with him?

"Echizen!"

Ryoma blinked away from his thoughts.

Horio was cowering behind one of the baskets where they store tennis balls in. "Watch where you're aiming at!" The boy shakily instructed from behind the basket. He had enough trauma from Echizen's stray serves to last him a lifetime. Lots of tennis balls were littered around him, evidence of Echizen's absent-minded rampage. "Please?" Being around Echizen was hazardous to his health.

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It was official.

He had a headache; a really big one. It started with a mild throbbing on his left temple which morphed into a dull pounding and then escalated into what felt like beating of ceremonial drums on his head.

"We should get our photos taken first, while we still look fresh! While we're not tired from walking yet!"

"Are you kidding me? We just got off the train! My hair's a mess and my clothes are all rumpled. I think I have a gum stuck in my shoe and I'm not going to be very photogenic, looking like this!"

The girl with the short pigtails glared ferociously. "It's not my fault you're ugly! You can't be photogenic even with the most expensive equipment for photography!"

Veins were visibly popping out of Ann's forehead. "If I'm ugly then you're absolutely hideous, banshee! I'm not ugly!"

"You're right. You're not ugly. You're fugly."

"What the heck does fugly mean? That's not even a real word!"

Tezuka's headache escalated as the two girls argued loudly. You'd think that their shrill voices would be drowned out in the hustle and bustle of the busy streets of Shibuya, but not even the noise of the crowds could stifle the overwhelmingly loud argument. His splitting headache was getting worse every minute.

It started the second they met on the station, even way before they stepped on the train. He was starting to rethink his agreement to help Sakuno play cupid between her friends and her chosen Romeos. Why did she ask _him_ of all people anyway? Fuji or Oishi would've been better choices, in his opinion. He didn't know the first thing about how to match two people together.

'Just follow my lead and back me up,' she had said. What he wanted to do right now was just bark out orders to Momo and Kamio to date the two girls already and spare him the headache.

Seeing no end to their endless battle, Sakuno stepped in. "I'm kinda hungry. Are you hungry, buchou?" The four paused like cornered mice and waited for Tezuka's reply. The arguing girls looked like they just remembered he was with them. At his slight nod, the two shrieking girls relented.

"We could go to McDonald's first, it's Sakuno's favorite." They were surprised that they said it at the same time, but it was true. Their friend was very easy to please. She had the same reaction to a takoyaki stand in the sidewalk to a high class restaurant in the swanky end of town. Momo and Kamio had no objections either.

"But first, pick a buddy!" Sakuno stalled their journey towards food.

"Huh?" Four perplexed faces looked back at her.

"Pick a buddy," She happily repeated, looking totally innocent. Momo and Kamio looked at each other warily the same way Ann and Tomoka did. Clearly they didn't want to be buddies with each other. Without even thinking of what he was doing, Kamio unconsciously picked Tomoka when he should normally have picked Ann instead. He was surprised to find himself paired up with her, so he looked away to hide the slight tinge in his cheeks. Thankfully, his hair covered most of it.

Sakuno was secretly pleased with his choice. She originally thought that she'd have to give him a slight push in the right direction, but it seemed like they didn't need as much help as she thought they'd need. "Alright, now take hold of your buddy's hand and let's get going."

"What?" The four people protested, the boys blushed more than the girls did and then inched away from each other.

Sakuno blinked at them innocently. No amount of protesting was going to save them from this because she had Mitsu-nii on her side! Momo-senpai and Kamio-kun were sure to obey him without question. "What's wrong, you guys? Shibuya is really crowded and I don't want any of us to get lost. But if we really do get lost, it's better to get lost in pairs rather than all by yourself, right? That's why we should have a buddy system."

She was right, the crowds of people milling around them consisted of people from all ages and it was very easy to get lost in the crowd, especially for people of Ann, Tomoka and Sakuno's height and stature. Ann and Tomoka could fight their way through crowds but still… Sakuno had a really bad sense of direction.

"I'll pair up with you then!" Ann and Tomoka said at the same time again, then glared at each other. "Stop imitating what I'm saying!" They snarled at each other.

"But I already have a buddy." Sakuno informed her friends. As if on cue, Tezuka stepped closer to her, making it clear who her buddy was. He was quick to pick up and improvise on his fellow self-proclaimed cupid's schemes. Sakuno was relying on him to help her with her plan and he didn't want to disappoint.

"Momo, you're with Tachibana. Kamio, you're with Osakada." Tezuka barked out.

The boys obeyed, albeit a little reluctantly. The girls weren't brave enough to nay say Tezuka's choice of buddies. "Umm… but do we really have to hold hands, buchou?" Momo couldn't refuse an order from his buchou, so he stopped trying to inch away and accepted his fate.

Kamio also respected Tezuka's authority so he stood next to Tomoka but he was also reluctant to hold her hand. People might assume they were dating or something!

At the boys' indecision, Tezuka took Sakuno's small hand into one of his own. You have to lead by example and they were going to be stuck here all day if he was to wait on the two smitten chaps. Sakuno's hand was very soft.

Their faces hotter than a jumbo bag of Flaming Hot Cheetos, Momo and Kamio followed Tezuka's example. Sakuno was so pleased, she had difficulty stifling a giggle from escaping her mouth. Ann-chan looked so cute with Momo-senpai and Tomo-chan looked really good with Kamio-kun. She squeezed her Mitsu-nii's hand instead. He squeezed back and started walking towards the direction of the nearest McDonald's.

It was really crowded when they got there. The lines winded in a long, snake-like shape, extending outside. The girls went to find available seats while the boys lined up to take their orders. Momo took Ann's, Kamio took Tomoka's but Tezuka didn't even ask for what Sakuno wanted. He was familiar with her usual tastes.

When they returned to their 'buddies', they each carried their buddies' meals.

"Sakuno. . ." Ann's right eye twitched, "Banshee. . . Happy Meals?"

Sakuno was gleefully looking for the toy that came with her Happy Meal. Tomoka shot a deadpan look at Ann. "It's because we like to give them to my brothers." The twin hellions were easy to tame if she brought them toys to bribe them into submission with. Sakuno was kind enough to help her collect toys to use for bribery and ordered Happy Meals every time she went to McDonald's to eat. If Tomoka wasn't with her, she'd save it until they got together to give it to her. Sure enough, Sakuno handed her toy over. "Thanks Sakuno." Tomoka placed them inside her bag. Those little spawns of the devil were going to be cute little angels later.

During the meal the girls planned what and where they were going to do next.

"Since we're here, I want to check out the sale at 109," Ann sipped her coke after she said it. The Shibuya 109 (or just 109 for short), one of the famous shopping centers near the Shibuya Station, was having the biggest sale of the year and she wanted to look at the cute tops that they offered.

"Oh yeah, maybe we can find something to get Atobe-san there." Since Sakuno expected a reply from him, Tezuka shrugged. They both agreed (or rather Sakuno asked him and she interpreted his silence and shrug as agreement) to get Atobe a thank you gift of some sort. Their Shibuya excursion served three purposes: a) to get Atobe a thank you gift b) to get Oishi a birthday gift and c) to push the two pairs together.

"I want to watch a movie." Tomoka said as she nibbled on some fries.

Momo started choking on his drink. "But – but that'd be like – like something you do when you're on a date!" He sputtered. Kamio scowled at him.

"So?" Ann asked. "I don't mind. Think of it as a group date. Ne, Momoshiro-kun?" Surprisingly, Kamio didn't jump up and start shouting at Momo. Even Momo looked surprised at the unexpected development.

"Then my date is Sakuno!" Tomoka proclaimed.

Tezuka and Kamio looked warily at each other. Kamio wanted to say something but wisely kept his mouth shut. Tezuka's look clearly meant that he'd rather jump off of a cliff instead of going on a date with Kamio.

"But Mitsu-nii and I are getting a present for Atobe-san and Oishi-senpai, Tomo-chan." Sakuno reminded her. "And your partner is Kamio-kun." Hmmm… was that a blush on Tomo-chan's face?

"W-whatever then," Tomoka said as casually as she could. Who was she to argue, especially when Tezuka-buchou agreed with Sakuno like that? If she was going to be stuck with Kamio-kun… well… she didn't really mind, honestly.

"What would you like to do, Momo-senpai?" Sakuno asked.

"Mmmm… we could go to the arcades and play some DDR." He suggested, and then looked at his captain, almost as if he was asking for permission. Tezuka impassively stared back at him before he bit into his burger.

"And don't forget that we have to go to a photo booth!" Sakuno reminded. Tezuka felt her nudge his foot under the table so he nodded his assent. That was what his purpose was. His mission, should he choose to accept it (and he did), was to reinforce Sakuno's matchmaking in exchange for a week's worth of homemade bentos of his choice… so he wasn't complaining… much. A week's worth of bentos was enough to put up with Ann and Tomoka's constant bickering. It reminded him of Momo's relationship with Kaidoh, when he thought about it… only with less tennis and with no barking orders of laps around the court.

And after a while, when the ceremonial drums in your head had gone way past beyond being just a normal splitting headache, you developed an immunity to it.

"Ahahahahahaha… ugly's going to make the photo booth malfunction with her face."

A fry barely missed hitting Tomoka's head.

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First, they went to get their photos taken. The photo sticker booth was big enough to squish all six of them in it. The girls had fun changing their backdrops and playing with the air holes that gave their hair windblown effects. He didn't object to the colorful background but he did put his foot down at the flying hotdog. He didn't crack a smile, but the others commented on how friendly he looked when they had the pictures developed. In the end, the boys got two pictures each and the girls had three. The one leftover was entrusted to Tomoka.

Next, they went to the mall to look for their gifts. They didn't find any for Atobe, but Ann found a really cute top that she just had to have. They also found some really neat aquarium ornaments for Oishi, whose birthday was coming up, so they bought those and continued for their search for the perfect thank you gift for the guy who had everything.

After they left the mall, they entered kiosk after kiosk, just browsing, but Sakuno never found what she was looking for. She didn't know what it was, but nothing caught her eye, unlike their gift for Oishi. The girls seemed set to explore store after store, kiosk after kiosk, and since they had absolutely no appreciation for things like shopping, Kamio, Momo and Tezuka silently followed.

Their buddy system was still in place, of course. Tezuka was secretly amused at Kamio and Momo's reactions to it. He'd catch the looks they sneaked each other before they would look away and pretend like something away from their partner amused him. How could he not notice, since whenever they did that, Sakuno would shake his hand or squeeze it, and then giggle before pointing at the events happening? It was like watching a teenage love comedy on television.

Not that he watched any of those, of course.

Kamio would maintain as much distance from Tomoka as much as possible, or until some random guy gave Tomoka too much attention. Kamio would then discreetly walk just a little closer to her and make their attached hands more visible. Momo pretty much just followed meekly behind Ann. Tezuka knew who was going to wear the pants in that relationship if they ever got together. Only if some random dude off the street would pause and give the Tachibana girl a second look would meek Momo turn into something fierce.

They reminded Tezuka of dogs marking their territory; Kamio and Momo both.

After they exhausted what felt like all the shops in the area, a suggestion of going to the arcade was made. He had no objection to that, so they went. The four teens in denial played fighting games to take out aggression while Tezuka and Sakuno played a racing game. Sakuno sucked. She crashed most of the time and her car ended up blown to bits in a fiery death after she crashed into a wall.

If you think about it, an outsider would probably see their group as teenagers having a triple date. They were wrong, of course, because even though Momo was in a not-date with Ann and Kamio was in another not-date with Tomoka, Tezuka was definitely in a real not-date with Sakuno. Tezuka Kunimitsu does not go to not-dates. He hasn't been on any kind of dates yet, either. Right now, he was just hanging out with a friend and her friends, while doing that friend a favor.

He didn't mind. He didn't mind the gossip that he knew circulated among some people about him and their coach's granddaughter. He knew that his friends knew the truth, his sensei knew the truth and if people don't believe him when he tells them that he's not dating his coach's granddaughter, then that's their problem, and not his.

But this… this was just…

Oh hell. No.

No.

This was another one of those things that he didn't usually mind doing, but only if he was in the sanctuary of his own home… not here, out in the open; where people can see him do it.

This was just. . .

No.

Sakuno clasped her hands tightly under her chin. A sure sign of pleading.

There was no. way. in. hell. that he —

Sakuno blinked once.

— would ever —

Twice.

. . . well. . .

Her bottom lip quivered.

— crap.

"Yay!" The girls chorused in unison. Even Momo looked excited. Kamio didn't have any objections either, so Tezuka didn't have the heart to tell them no… and he didn't want to disappoint when it was his turn, so he humored them.

The line to their chosen machine was long, but they waited patiently. The guys stuck close to the girls, hovering near like guard dogs against any male that threatened to invade their personal space. Some people in the arcades could get too touchy-gropey sometimes, especially in crowded places.

And Sakuno wore a skirt, Tezuka frowned when he noticed. She always did, come to think of it. Didn't she own a pair of pants or something? Tachibana and Osakada were both wearing Capri pants. Sakuno should learn to wear Capri pants, too; her skirt was too short. Because of that, he had to glare at several boys who threw lecherous looks their way. She was just twelve, for crying out loud. Didn't these people have any morals?

He finally relaxed his guard (somewhat) when it was their group's turn.

It was a battle between the sexes – boys versus girls.

Ann and Momo went first. Momo was an expert, but so was Ann. Their scores were so close together, with Ann just slightly in the lead. Kamio and Tomoka went next. Their 'match' ended in a perfect draw, earning a round of teasing from Ann, Sakuno and even the small crowd that gathered to watch.

He noticed how Kamio had that constant red tint in his face the whole time. Maybe it was a result from their activity..? Or maybe Sakuno had good instincts playing cupid… he didn't know for sure so he didn't come to any conclusions… yet.

He was getting soft; that was one thing he was sure of. Agreeing to do this when he wasn't at home… he did it with Sakuno lots of times before, but… this was different…

_It moved me downtown, the beat_

_It moved me downtown, the beat_

_It moved me, it moved me_

_It moved me, down, down..._

But there was no backing down now so he just had to make the best of it.

_Let's groove tonight_

_Share the spice of life_

It wasn't like he had no experience in this in the first place.

_Baby slice it right_

_We're gonna groove tonight_

They did this all the time… well… most of the time, actually, if it was just the two of them.

_Let's groove tonight_

_Share the spice of life_

Especially back when he used to babysit Sakuno. Not a lot of people knew about this side of him though.

_Baby slice it right_

_We're gonna groove tonight_

It was a good way to pass the time.

_Whoo-oh.._

And it was a pretty good workout.

_Let this groove... alright... whoo-oh_

_Let this groove... stand up... (up, up, up..)_

Sakuno even proved that she was good at it too, surprisingly.

_Let this groove, light up your fuse_

_It's alright, alright, alright... whoo-oh_

If you saw how she played tennis or count the number of times she'd trip on a mere pebble, you would assume she'd be bad at it, but she wasn't. She could hold her own, truth be told.

_Let this groove, set in your shoes _

Just not against him.

_Stand up, alright, alright whoo-oh_

He got a little carried away and couldn't help but show off at the end.

As the last of the lyrics faded and their scores were tallied, the crowd erupted into an enthusiastic applause. Several boisterous patrons even whistled in appreciation. Momo looked totally awestruck. Kamio's one visible eye was as wide as a saucer. Ann and Tomoka were stunned speechless. Sakuno was grinning from ear to ear on the opposing dance pad. She was used to losing to him and wasn't the least bit affected when he was proclaimed the winner.

"AAA!" Momo was in shock. Eiji-senpai scored a perfect score every so often, but to see buchou doing it… was just… "Wow!" Kamio nodded energetically beside him, and so did Tomoka and Ann. Clearly, they were in total agreement with Momo's sentiments.

"He's really good, isn't he?" Sakuno earned more vigorous nods. Who knew that behind that Tezuka Zone laid an extreme DDR player? Watching him dance was riveting. "You know what we should do next?" She felt like she was on a roll. She wanted to take advantage of Momo-senpai, Kamio-kun, Ann-chan and Tomo-chan's shock in discovering Mitsu-nii's hidden DDR-player side. "We should go do some karaoke!"

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"I can't get Mizuki-senpai to reschedule." Yuuta sighed, dismayed. He just got off the phone pleading with their team manager to exempt him from whatever training schedule he had planned for the St. Rudolph's team this coming Golden Week. Why didn't he just say that his family had plans? Why did he willingly commit himself to it? Why didn't he know sooner what his aniki's plans were? He banged his head on his aniki's study table. Once, twice… three times because he felt like an idiot.

"There, there, Yuuta," Syusuke tried to console his younger brother. "I'm glad you want to spend time with me that much but there's no need to physically punish yourself for it. I know you love your aniki very much, but I'm not going to be away for that long. I'll even bring you back a souvenir if you want. I promise to spend more time with you when I get back, okay?"

Yuuta banged his head twice more on the table before giving his aniki a dry look. "I don't want to spend time with you, aniki."

Syusuke's grin never faltered. "Then why are you so upset that you can't come with us to Atobe's hot spring resort?"

Yuuta scratched the tip of his nose with his pointer finger as he averted his gaze. "That's just… because I want to go to a hot spring resort, too! It's unfair that only you get to go!" He complained.

The Golden Week is the week of April 29 to May 5, which includes four national holidays. It's one of the most important holidays celebrated on the Japanese calendar and a lot of people even take time off from work (although most companies close down to give their employees time off) to travel and relax.

Yuuta thought that their family was going to just hang back and relax, do same old routine they used to do this year, and that's what he told his senpai when he asked about his plans for that week. Mizuki-senpai then listed him down for the rigorous training he had planned for the members of the St. Rudolph's team who were taking it easy this holiday week.

He didn't really mind until he came home this weekend and heard what his aniki and his friends had planned. The invitation extended to Sakuno-chan and _her friends_. He was friends with Sakuno-chan, so it was only natural for his aniki to tell him that Sakuno-chan wanted him to come if he was available. And he wanted to go with them.

"Don't worry Yuuta, I'll take lots of pictures, if it'll make you feel better."

Yuuta glared at him. It wasn't like he wanted to spend time with his aniki. No, it wasn't anything like that… "I never get to go to hot spring resorts," he almost-whined. His aniki still wasn't buying his excuse, was he? Well… he had no other reason behind wanting to go! What did his aniki want with him? Why did he look at him like there was something more to this?

Syusuke's phone beeped, indicating an incoming message, distracting him from tormenting his sulking brother. His blue eyes widened when he opened it. He was sure he would've fallen backwards if he wasn't already sitting down. His mouth opened and closed but no sound came out as he continued to watch what was unfolding on his cellphone.

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By the time Tezuka dropped off Sakuno at her house that night, she was pooped. Her plan to hook up her friends together felt like it was a total success, but it was still too early to tell. She didn't want to count her chickens before the eggs hatched, but she was very optimistic.

Sitting in a tub of steaming hot water, she looked back at their activities and replayed the interaction between the pairs that they pushed together. She gave herself a mental pat on the back once again for enlisting the help of Mitsu-nii, since his presence certainly placed the boys in line. Without him there, Momo-senpai and Kamio-kun would probably have never agreed to do half the things they did today in a million years.

By drafting the help of one whom both boys recognized as an alpha male, she not only was able to convince Momo-senpai and Kamio-kun to give in to what she and the girls wanted to do, but none of her four friends looked like they even knew what she was up to.

Mitsu-nii was a good buffer because nobody would suspect that he was helping her with matchmaking her friends together. It was the perfect plan! (Oh, there goes that evil cackling in her head again.)

After she changed into her nightclothes, she prepared to make an entry in her diary, but before she could start, her phone beeped twice, indicating that she received two messages.

They were both from Syusuke-nii. She read the text message first:

_Hey Sakuno-chan, look at what a little birdie sent me!_

Her eyes widened when she saw the content of the next one.

Oh my…

_Ain't no other man, can stand up next to you… Ain't no other man on the planet does what you do… _

_You're the kinda guy, a girl finds in a blue moon… You got soul, you got class… You got style, with your badass - oh yeah!_

Her cellphone might as well have played the theme song to Jaws or that horrible, scary music that accompanied all horror films. She swallowed audibly before she pushed the talk button. "M-moshi-moshi?"

"Sakuno."

"H-hai?" She couldn't keep her voice from quivering. If she listened hard enough, she could hear deep breathing at the other end of the line. "You got the same mail I just received, didn't you?" She ventured a guess. His palpable silence was unequivocal proof that he did. He was probably gritting his teeth in an effort to steel himself from getting stark raving mad right now. Most probably at her, if anybody was curious enough to ask.

Even without seeing him face to face, she could guess how upset he was. Ummm… "I'm sorry?" An apology won't do much, but that would set them on the right track of _not_ killing her and _not_ wringing her neck come Monday morning. Syusuke-nii and the whole tennis club was probably going to run a hundred laps everyday for a whole week or until the whole thing blew over. She should be thankful that she wasn't part of his tennis team.

"You looked really great, though," she tried another approach. Flattery won't get you anywhere when you were dealing with Seigaku's buchou, but it was worth a try, wasn't it? "Even Momo-senpai said so himself that he couldn't hold a candle to your moves and —"

"Sakuno," he said once again. She was starting to wonder if 'Sakuno' was his favorite word or maybe he just liked to say it whenever she knew she was in trouble with him… like some sort of scare tactic. If it was, it was working really well.

"Hai, Mitsu-nii?" It was true… your life did flash right before your eyes before you died.

The extended silence was killing her. What was she in for now, she wondered.

"You owe me homemade bentos for two months."

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The bus that Atobe provided for them was huge. The chairs were larger than her. The rows were comprised of three seats on the left side, two on the right side and there was more than enough for three teams plus some.

"Is this bus really for us?" When Atobe-san told her that he'd provide transportation for the whole tennis club 'plus some' so she should feel to invite whoever she wanted, she didn't imagine that he would go above and beyond special treatment.

They have all been invited to Atobe's private hot spring retreat in Hakone. When he came to visit Sakuno in the hospital, he suggested that they go to Hokkaido at first but Sakuno had exclaimed how far it was and how expensive it would be for them to travel all the way there. He assured her that money was not going to be a problem, even if the whole Seigaku tennis club came, but Sakuno didn't want to impose on him. She repeatedly refused his suggestions, so he switched from Hokkaido to Hakone.

Hakone is relatively close to Tokyo and boasts substantial tourist activity. The spectacular view of Mt. Fuji and the abundance of hot springs in the area drew local and foreign tourists year round. It should have lots of tourists now, because it was the Golden Week, but Atobe assured them total privacy and exclusive use of his private hot springs. Yes, the rich bastard had his very own private hot springs.

At first, she didn't want to go. Ann was fully supportive of her decision. Atobe's Hakone Golden Week get-away was a bad idea and she didn't want him anywhere near Sakuno. Haruhi and Kazuma had been there when Sakuno politely refused, but he went levels above her and asked Ryuzaki-sensei's permission, inviting the whole Seigaku tennis team in the process. When Tezuka didn't oppose his sensei's decision, Sakuno and Ann were outnumbered.

The bright side was that Sakuno (with the help of Tezuka) got Atobe a thank you gift… and it looked like the vacation was going to benefit the team as a whole. The others (like Kikumaru) were really looking forward to it. It was going to be fun.

Tezuka was seated on the window seat of the first row on the left side of the bus. Sakuno sat next to him. He looked at the pink pig she carried curiously. "You still have Buta-chan?" It was several shades of pink lighter than the sleeveless shirt that she was wearing, and it looked cute with her short brown skirt.

Sakuno tightly clutched the pig which was twice her body size, feeling a little defensive. Her toes curled inside her white socks, scraping against the bottom of her pink sneakers. She loved Buta-chan. It looked worn-out from age but not abuse or neglect. She took good care of it ever since she received it as a Christmas present from him two years ago. "I can't sleep without it." The only reason why she didn't bring it to her to the hospital was because she didn't want to expose it to hospital germs. Buta-chan was special.

Only experts in deciphering Tezuka's facial features would be able to identify the pleased look on his face.

"Chibi-musume that's so cute nyah!" Kikumaru reached out to pet the stuffed animal. "Hoi, are you sitting here?" He asked Fuji who was standing behind him in the middle aisle, placing his bag on the overhead compartment.

"Yes," Fuji answered in behalf of Sakuno. "She suffers from motion sickness easily. Sitting in the front helps prevent it."

"Don't they have medicine to take care of that nyah?"

Sakuno looked a little embarrassed. "I took some, but they don't help much, Kikumaru-senpai." She was just too sensitive to the rocking of the vehicle if she can't see the road ahead because the seats were taller than her.

"Is that so nyah?" Eiji grabbed his Ochibi who just boarded and sat him down forcefully on the seat next to his Chibi-musume, taking his bag in the process. "Ochibi you sit here, nyah?"

Sakuno's eyes widened as she inched away from Ryoma-kun and closer to her Mitsu-nii. Why was Kikumaru-senpai making Ryoma-kun sit here of all places?

"Eiji, that's _my_ seat!" Fuji protested as he finished securing his bag.

"Eiji-senpai!" Ryoma glared at his senpai who looked like a cat that just got some cream. What was he up to?

"Fuji, let Ochibi sit there because he gets motion sickness easily, too nyah!"

"Eiji-senpai, I don't—"

"And it'll be easier for me to talk to him because I sit just across the aisle nyah!"

Fuji's brows wrinkled. "You could just sit next to each other and make things easier—"

"But Oishi is sitting next to me, nyah! And I'm very good at finding good places for people to sit on." He then grabbed Kamio who looked totally out of place in the sea of Seigaku students and sat him on the seat directly behind Tezuka. "You sit there, Kamio!"

"What the— Kikumaru-san—"

"Ah!" He had no chance to protest as Tomoka squealed and pointed at Sakuno. "You're sitting next to Ryoma-sama! That's great, Sakuno! I'll sit behind you, okay?" She sat next to Kamio, effectively foiling his escape from the prison that Kikumaru had placed him in. Fuji admitted defeat and sat next to her. Kikumaru's plan was complete. "Isn't this great, Kamio-kun?"

Kamio shifted. He wanted to tell her that he felt out of rhythm, since he was the only one from Fudomine here, but he didn't have the heart to rain on her parade. She was clearly enjoying herself. "Ah… yeah…"

"We're going to have so much fun!" Tomoka continued. "It's too bad that the others couldn't come but you're here so try to make the best of it, okay?" In truth, she didn't really feel all that bad that the Tachibanas had plans with their family for Golden Week, leaving Ann unable to come with them. In her mind, Ann was able to go to the Eyes Rutherford concert and she got stuck at home babysitting her brothers. This was just the how the balance was kept in the universe: Ann was stuck with a family outing and she was free to go with Sakuno on a free onsen trip.

Life was good.

Kamio wished he should've said he wasn't free this week. Or at least had enough willpower to defend himself against those puppy eyes. They were the reason why he was here right now.

Do you have any plans for Golden Week, Kamio-kun?

Wouldn't it be nice to go to some nice, private hot springs, ne Kamio-kun?

Too bad Ann-chan can't come, eh, Kamio-kun?

But you already agreed so you're not going back on your word now, Kamio-kun?

_Arg! _Even Ibu had abandoned him!

"We're going to visit my grandparents in the country." Was what he said.

He was probably lying! He probably knew what trap the girls from Seigaku had set to lure any unsuspecting male into joining their trip to Atobe's domain. What the heck was he doing here anyway?

He didn't belong here.

Even if the girl chattering beside him was really good company, despite her scary nature, it didn't mean that he was fit to join this outing. In truth, he felt like an intruder. They weren't wearing their uniforms so an outsider wouldn't think they were from different schools, but that didn't erase the fact that he was from Fudomine and that he was in a bus full of people from Seigaku.

"I'm glad you came, Kamio-kun." Only the top half of Sakuno's face peeked out of the seat on the row in front of them.

Since four sets of eyes were looking at him expectantly, he agreed easily. "Aa, me too."

_Promiscuous girl… Wherever you are… I'm all alone… And it's you that I want.  
Promiscuous boy… You already know… That I'm all yours… What you waiting for?_

Sakuno instantly knew who was calling her, just from the ringtone. She didn't even need to look at the caller ID when she flipped her phone open to answer it. "Atobe-san?"

Ryoma wasn't the only one who raised an eyebrow, but he was probably the only one thinking along the lines of: _Holy freaking crap! What the heck is Monkey Boy calling Ryuzaki for!_

In other portions of the bus, Momo and Kaidoh chose seats away from each other. Kawamura was helping Horio secure his bags overhead. Katsuo and Kachiro were absent because they too had plans with their families that they couldn't get out of. Inui was seated behind Oishi and Kikumaru. The seat next to him was unoccupied.

"Ah, yes. I think everyone's ready now, we're just waiting for the driver to finish his preparations and we're off. Thank you again." Sakuno spoke as she blushed. She would never be able to repay his kindness to her. "Oh, he's here!" The bus driver took his seat and started the engine, warming it up. "Okay. Mhm. Alright. We'll see you in a bit, Atobe-san. Ja ne!" She hung up, turned and sat back down on her chair just as the bus started moving.

"Sakuno," Tomoka spoke as the bus moved, "I love your ringtone. When did you get that one? I thought you only had UVERworld ringtones?"

"It's really nice, isn't it? Atobe-san sent it to me. Would you like me to send it to you?"

If they took the train instead of the privately chartered bus, it would have taken them approximately seventy minutes to reach Hakone from Tokyo. It didn't really matter much, because their chartered bus was extremely luxurious and made them feel more relaxed. Even if Hakone is located in the Kanagawa Prefecture, it was still relatively close to Tokyo, so the journey wasn't that big of a deal.

"Yes please!" Tomoka happily replied.

"I wonder what my ringtone is for your phone, Sakuno-chan." Fuji wondered out loud, engaging in the girls' conversation about cellphones. "Can I choose my own, perhaps?"

"Sure, Syusuke-nii." Sakuno handed her phone over.

"Chibi-musume, I don't have your number yet, nyah!"

"Let me send it to you, Eiji." He pulled out his own cellphone. "I'll store your number in here, too."

"Woohoo! Thanks Fuji! I bet not even Inui has it yet nyah!"

"I believe you are wrong, Kikumaru. I already have possession of Ryuzaki-chan's cellphone number." Even Tomoka turned to him in disbelief; a little bit awed at his data-gathering skills. He pushed his glasses up his nose before he explained. "I got it from Tezuka."

"No way!" Eiji turned in his seat, trying to judge if he was telling the truth or not.

"Yes way," Inui replied.

"Am I the last person here to have my Chibi-musume's number, nyah?" Kikumaru looked a little heartbroken. "Why Chibi-musume? I'm supposed to be one of the first ones to know info like that about you coz you're my chibi now." He looked at his chibi daughter sadly. He was very disappointed.

"There, there, Eiji." Oishi patted him on the head reassuringly. "I'm sure you're not the last one to have Ryuzaki-chan's number. Ne, minna?" By now, both of them were facing towards the back of the bus. Kikumaru was the only one sitting on his knees facing backwards so he can see better without having to crane his neck though.

"I have it!" Horio happily informed everybody.

"Horio, you have a cellphone now?" Tomoka asked incredulously, not bothering to turn in her seat like her senpais did because it was too troublesome.

"My mom just got it for me recently." Horio explained. "It's because she felt safer if she could reach me anytime when I'm late coming home from club practice."

"We have to exchange numbers!" Tomoka told him.

"I could send it to you, Osakada-chan," Fuji said. He was still messing with Sakuno's phone.

"Thanks, Fuji-senpai!" Then she turned to answer Oishi's question. "I have it, too, of course. And so does Kamio-kun."

Kamio nodded beside her. No matter what school you were from or how good you were at tennis, teenagers would always be teenagers, he guessed. They were no different from him, so he started to relax.

Kikumaru looked gloomier at each revelation. Oishi sought to make him feel better. "I'm sure Taka-san—"

"I have it." Kawamura said before Oishi could finish his sentence. "Sometimes Ryuzaki-chan calls in behalf of Ryuzaki-sensei to place orders and such."

"Er. . ." Oishi swiveled his gaze to his next target. "Kaidoh—"

"I have it, Oishi-senpai. Fssssshhhh." Even Inui raised a questioning brow at this. Kaidoh didn't want to tell them the circumstances of how he had come in possession of the girl's number, so he remained silent. Was it _that_ unbelievable for him to be in possession of their sensei's granddaughter's number?

Oishi had ran out of choices. "Um. . . Echizen?" He almost dreaded to ask the young tennis prince. Eiji looked like he was going to start bawling soon.

Ryoma couldn't keep from feeling annoyed that Ryuzaki and everybody else who had her number seemed so. . . free. . . with her number. Did everyone in Japan have her number or something? "I don't have a cellphone," he told his senpai. His baka oyaji would probably tease him to death about some imaginary girlfriend if he dared to ask for one anyway.

Oishi looked relieved. "There you go, Eiji! You're not the last one, after all!"

Eiji brightened up considerably. "Don't worry, nyah Ochibi? Once you get a cellphone, you can get Chibi-musume's number from me!" A slight tick developed on Ryoma's jaw. Eiji was unaware of it. He straightened up on his chair and sat back down facing the front again. "We should sing a song, nyah! One hundred bottles of—"

"No."

Kikumaru blinked at Tezuka who said it. "Tezuka doesn't like that song nyah?" His brows cutely furrowed as he thought of another song that would please his friend. "Ah! I saw this one on TV the other day." He breathed deeply before he started his new song. "Jeremiah was a bullfrog… was a good friend of mine… I never understood a word he said…" He paused to poke his partner on the arm, "Come on Oishi, you know the lyrics don't you?" Then continued, "But I helped him drink his wine…"

"Aaah…" Sakuno glanced from the rapidly developing tick on the side of Mitsu-nii's face to the singing redhead, "would you like some brownies, Kikumaru-senpai?" The question stopped him in mid-singing.

"Brownies?" Momo perked up from behind the bus.

"I made some snacks in case we got hungry during the trip. Would you like to eat some now, Momo-senpai?"

"Would I!" Momo was already scrambling to get to the front part of the bus, intent on getting first pick of the brownies.

"Momo, me first!" Kikumaru exclaimed. "As father, I get to eat my daughter's food first!"

Fuji dutifully stood up and took Sakuno's bag from the overhead compartment to hand it to her. She rummaged for the brownie containers. When she pulled it out, Momo and Kikumaru were standing on the aisle, beside Ryoma's seat, waiting for the goodies. She opened the container and offered it first to Tezuka who took one, and then passed it on to an exuberant Kikumaru.

"Mmmm…" Kikumaru had brownie crumbs all over his face on the first bite. He grabbed a couple more before he passed it to Momo who was loudly demanding that he not eat all the brownies before he had a taste of them.

"Pass it around, Momo." Oishi was a fan of Ryuzaki-chan's brownies, too. Oishi then passed it to Inui who passed it to Kawamura who passed it to Kaidoh. The rapidly depleting supply of brownies then made its way to Horio, who greedily dug in, before he passed it back to an even greedier Momo again. Momo then took two more out before he gave it to Kikumaru (who was the greediest of them all) and then returned to his seat. Kikumaru took more and then passed it to Kamio. He just remembered that Kamio was their guest.

By the time Tomoka took her share, there were only three pieces left. Fuji graciously offered a piece to Tezuka before he devoured the remaining two and happily presented the empty container to Echizen.

Ryoma gave him a black look and then scowled at the empty Tupperware. There was nothing but crumbs in it.

"Oops!" Fuji had the gall to look surprised when he glanced at the depleted supply of brownies. "I didn't realize I ate the last of it. Gomen, Echizen."

Ryoma narrowed his gaze. Fuji-senpai's closed eyes were hard to scrutinize, yet he wouldn't put it past the tensai to have deliberately ate all the brownies before the container made its way back to him. You would think that since he was sitting right next to Ryuzaki that when she passed it around, he would have been first… or at least second, since she just _had to _serve buchou first. But _noooooooooo_, Ryuzaki didn't even spare him a glance when she offered the rest of the bus food. The fat pink pig was wedged between them and she constantly attempted to mold into the buchou's side. He felt like she wanted to get as far away from him as possible, for some reason.

"Um, I have some chips if you want, Ryoma-kun." Sakuno meekly offered. She didn't look him in the eye so she wouldn't stutter, and when he grunted, she translated that to a yes and gave him the bag of chips.

"Before I forget," Fuji was taking out something in his pocket, "let's take a group picture!"

"Yay!" Kikumaru pumped his fist up in the air. "I want to be with my chibis!" He lifted his Ochibi out of his seat, plopped down on the seat and huggled his chibis close. His Ochibi was sitting on his lap and even Buta-chan was included in his chibi group hug.

Ryoma was torn between embarrassment and indignation. He was embarrassed because he was half-sitting on his senpai's lap and half on Ryuzaki's, and he was indignant because his senpai was treating him like some little kid again.

The others scrambled to find their places within Fuji's camera's vision. Some, like Tomoka and Momo, flashed victory signs while they had silly grins on their faces. Others, like Sakuno and Kamio, had friendly smiles on theirs.

"Smile, Tezuka!" Fuji coerced. "One, two, three…"

_Click!_

"Inui, can you take another picture with me in it this time?"

"Sure Fuji." Inui took the camera from him and took another group picture.

"Thanks."

The next picture taken had Eiji giving his Ochibi bunny ears, which allowed Sakuno to escape his grasp and scoot away from getting too close of a contact with Ryoma. She was starting to get the urge to hyperventilate.

"Eiji-senpai, you can go back to your seat now." Ryoma grumbled. Out of spite, he decided to eat the whole bag of chips by himself. He refused to share any with anyone who didn't leave a brownie for him.

Kamio was having a very good, animated conversation with Fuji and Tomoka. Fuji slipped and asked about what they did when they went to Shibuya that one time and that earned him a sharp, icy glare from Tezuka in the front.

None of them knew for sure who the guy who captured Tezuka's Triple A Victory on his camera for sure (although Fuji had an accurate idea, but he refused to incriminate his friend), but by the time Golden Week came, everyone who had a cellphone that had video playback capability saw the normally stoic buchou of Seigaku bust-a-move. It was like some sort of keitai (otherwise known as "mobile phone") revolution.

After Fuji's friend, who shall remain unnamed for now, sent it to him, he sent it to the rest of his team and triggered a domino effect. Fuji was the one who sent it to everyone on his contact list which included Sakuno, Tezuka, and of course, Yuuta. Yuuta then sent it to everyone on his contact list which included his own team which included one super gossip by the name of Mizuki. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Inside Seigaku, it was taboo to mention It to Tezuka, so whoever had it on their cellphones kept their mouth shut in front of the captain and talked about it only when they were out of his hearing range. The tennis team ran twice as many laps more than normal, but nobody dared to complain. Even Ryuzaki-sensei was aware of the cause of her captain's distress – she was the one who sent it to all the teachers in the Seishun Gakuen faculty – so she also stayed clear of him. It was just best to let him get over his snit by himself rather than to poke and prod him when he was on edge already.

Now, more than ever, was she ever thankful for Atobe's plans.

Sakuno didn't suffer his wrath like she feared she would. No wrath was unleashed upon her and she tried her best to keep it that way by cooking his lunches to perfection. If two months' worth of bentos was going to help him feel better about exposing his guilty pleasure to the world, so be it. It was, in a way, her fault anyway. If she hadn't asked for his help to get her friends together, he wouldn't have been dragged into that arcade and someone wouldn't have come along and recorded him grooving.

She refrained from telling him once again that he grooved rather well, and it looked like he was back to his normal stoic self now. She still had more than a month left in her 'punishment', but she was happy to do it for him. It was worth it. Just look at how Kamio-kun and Ann-chan talked so easily with each other now. That karaoke session was really fun and by the time they parted ways, the two pairs she was helping push together felt more and more like couples.

She soon felt the first signs of motion sickness, so she closed her eyes and leaned comfortably back against her seat. Lulled by the rocking motion of the vehicle, Sakuno fell asleep in no time, still clutching Buta-chan like a pink wall of pig between her and Ryoma. It took him longer, but Ryoma also drifted off to slumber in a matter of minutes.

Gradually, Sakuno slowly fell sideways.

Soon, her head ended up propped up by Tezuka's left side. Ryoma also fell sideways. He was very comfortably snuggled up with Buta-chan.

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Everyone on the Hyōtei team, except for Kabaji (because he already knew what was going on) and Jiroh (because he was too sleepy to care), were curious. Vacationing with Atobe was not a new thing to any of them, and they were used to their buchou's extravagance. What he considered a 'cottage', other people would call a freaking mansion; what he thought of as a light, normal, everyday breakfast, other people would call a several-course meal. They were used to his eccentricity by now.

They were also used to dealing with his 'mastermind' plans. He used the entire team to help test Seigaku's power once, before they went up against Rikkai Dai in the regional finals. They were used. Like pawns. But that was just how Atobe was.

When he asked them if they were free for Golden Week and if they were up to spending it with the team in his hot spring resort, they weren't surprised. What surprised them was when he said that he invited Seigaku over.

None of them asked him directly about the flowers, since it would mean that they'd have to admit they were spying on him if they did, so they kept their mouths shut. Nobody thought to ask Kabaji either, since the guy was as silent as a church mouse and didn't really speak much. Legend has it that he spoke more than just his automatic 'ossu' during the sports festival Atobe organized, but that was just a rumor. Nobody actually believed Kabaji spoke more than just 'ossu' because something like that just isn't possible.

Maybe, they rationalized, whoever started the rumor was affected by the altitude of the flying coliseum and started to hallucinate about things like a talking Kabaji.

Yep, that was the only explanation to it.

So they were pretty much on their own in the quest to make sense of Atobe's Hakone Golden Week with Seigaku, as Choutarou named it. And when Atobe's butler loudly announced that the bus had arrived, how could they not follow Atobe outside to welcome their guests?

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He woke up to a soft hand prodding him awake.

"Ryoma-kun, wake up. We're here."

When he opened his eyes, Ryuzaki's face was so close to his that he could feel her breath on his skin. He could feel a blush creeping into his cheeks so he discreetly put a little distance between them to regain his bearings. When did Ryuzaki become so comfortable in his presence?

"Everyone left already," Ryuzaki told him as his eyes swept over the empty expanse of the bus.

Huh. His dad always told him he slept like a log. Now he knew there was at least some truth in those words.

"Would you like to follow them or would you like to stay here a little longer?" Ryuzaki placed one hand over his gently. Heat was emanating from it and he could feel the softness of her hand against his. She looked so soft. He wondered if all of her was as soft as she looked. "Ryoma-kun?"

The pink monstrosity was now on the empty chair beside her. The space that existed between them was also rapidly disappearing. Since when did Ryuzaki get so bold?

"Ryoma-kun…"

"Yes?"

"Call me Sakuno."

He blinked. What did she just say?

"Ryoma-kun, I—" She was so close, she was literally breathing on his skin. "I—"

"— you what?" He prodded, unable to look away from her eyes. If he leaned forward a quarter of an inch, their faces would be touching.

"I lo—" she slowly leaned forward and —

With a little jolt, he woke up. For real this time. And he was drooling on something.

As he slowly regained conciousness, he became aware of two things all at once: He was leaning on something very soft and very fragrant, and Buta-chan was no longer between him and Ryuzaki. Ryuzaki was now cuddling Buta-chan really close to her bosom as she snuggled comfortably against Tezuka's side, and who knows how long he had been snuggling against her side.

Ryoma shot up like a bullet, closing his mouth and wiping his drool at the same time. Thankfully, his jerky movements didn't awaken Ryuzaki and the buchou barely spared him a glance. The guy looked totally comfortable, even with the girl trying to burrow herself into his side. Like a kitten seeking warmth.

Before he could identify the resentment that made its way into his heart, the bus came to a gentle halt. They have arrived at their destination. The bus rolled to a gentle stop; most of the passengers didn't even feel the driver braking.

"We're here!" Kikumaru happily stated the obvious. Oishi yawned into his hand beside him. Inui rubbed his eyes behind them. He was just drifting off to sleep when they arrived. In the back of the bus, the others began to stir as well. Kaidoh was cracking his neck, Momo was rolling the stiffness away from his shoulders, and Horio was openly stretching.

Fuji was already unloading his bags from the overhead compartment, while Kamio was stuck in the position that Tezuka was currently in. Tomoka was using him as a human pillow and he didn't know how to wake her up.

Fuji came to his rescue.

"Osakada-chan," Fuji shook the girl's shoulder gently.

Tomoka rubbed her face against her human pillow three times before she opened her eyes. Her pillow was hard yet comfortable, and it smelled good. Kamio blushed to the roots of his hair. Fuji pretended not to notice. Tomoka wasn't even fazed when she recognized her pillow. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, stretched and then stood up to disembark, leaving a still red-faced Kamio still rooted to the chair.

"Eiji, go." Fuji instructed at Kikumaru who was blocking the way. He leaned over his Ochibi to get to his sleeping 'daughter' and let the others pass.

Ryoma was trying hard not to shove him off forcefully off of him. "Eiji-senpai, let me out." He hissed through gritted teeth. He didn't dare to raise his voice. Ryuzaki was still asleep.

"But we should wake her up, nyah?" Kikumaru whispered as he gently poked Sakuno's cheek. She stirred away from the poking, seeking refuge in Tezuka's side.

"Eiji," Tezuka pinned a hard look at Kikumaru who got ready to poke her again, "go."

"Yeah Eiji, Sakuno-chan takes a little time to wake up. By the time everything's ready and everyone has disembarked, she should be ready, too." Inui took that down on his notebook, silently wondering how Fuji would be privy to that information. "See? She's waking up now."

The others started getting off as soon as they got their carry-on bags. It was a little difficult to move around Kikumaru, so Oishi dragged him out of the bus. Atobe and most of his team were there to greet them in front. Everyone but Jiroh (who was still too busy sleeping), were too curious for their own good after all. They didn't want to miss the first glimpse of who their 'special guest' was, so they were lined up in front of the entrance, ready to greet their guests as soon as they stepped off the bus.

"Thank you for inviting us, Atobe." Oishi bowed his head gratefully at Hyōtei's buchou. Atobe returned his gratitude with a slight nod of his own, his eyes searching the bus. Kaidoh, Kawamura were just getting off, Momo following right behind them. A slightly red-faced Kamio came next, followed by Tomoka who felt very refreshed from her nap.

"Wow!" She gushed, looking at the lodgings instead of the unofficial welcoming committee there to greet them. "Isn't this nice, Kamio-kun?"

"Aa," Kamio agreed, and stared back at the people who were eyeing him curiously. The Hyōtei boys recognized who he was. How could they forget the teammate of Tachibana Kippei? Kamio could probably guess what they were thinking about. They were probably wondering what he was doing with Seigaku. They weren't _that_ curious about his presence, he guessed, when their curious faces shifted to the girl behind him. Tomoka was oblivious to it; she was still admiring the large mansion that Atobe called a 'small private onsen retreat'.

Inui disembarked next, a curious brow quirked at the seemingly warm reception presented by the Hyōtei team. Ryoma looked bored as usual; he even yawned as his feet touched the ground. Horio was next, and a still groggy Sakuno and finally Tezuka were behind him. Tezuka was carrying Buta-chan for Sakuno.

Horio was wondering what his mother packed inside his backpack. It weighed like it was filled with bricks. It didn't feel this heavy before… did it? Ah, but that didn't matter now because he was going to have fun. He didn't get the chance to go to an onsen resort everyday, you know. He happily bounced down the steps of the bus. When he reached the last step, his backpack felt heavier than usual. He pulled his backpack higher and stepped aside; his intent was to join his schoolmates (and Kamio) in that line facing Hyōtei they seemed to have formed.

Something went flying behind him when he did.

Sakuno was barely awake when she was told that they had reached their destination. She was still drowsily rubbing the sluggish feeling from her eyes when she miscalculated her next step. She missed the last three steps leading down the bus. Her sneakered feet met nothing and she was propelled into the air with the force of a pebble hurled from a sling. In an attempt to recover her balance, she grabbed the nearest thing she could, which was Horio. But he shifted, then stepped aside, making her wish she knew how to fly.

Tezuka's eyes widened as he saw what happened, as if in slow motion. He attempted to grab her from behind, but his fast reflexes (that were impeded by Buta-chan) weren't quick enough to grab hold of her to prevent her from eating dirt with a loud squeak of pain.

"Kyaa!"

Dust and dirt flew out in all directions when she landed. Sakuno had her chin and entire front part planted in the driveway. She was doing a very good imitation of a flightless Supergirl.

When the dust settled, everyone from the entire Hyōtei team (except for Jiroh who was still sleeping somewhere inside the lodge) to all the Seigaku Regulars (especially Tezuka because he was directly behind her), including Horio, Tomoka, Kamio and even the bus driver (although he can't see much because Tezuka was blocking his vision – but he definitely saw the dive), were treated to a view of Sakuno's checkered pink panties.

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**( )-( )  
(-'.'-)  
(")-(")**  
I need a monkey with banana peels to follow Sakuno around. Joudan lang.  
(I'm getting tired of putting OBVIOUS disclaimers... people know they're not mine, right?) McDonald's… DDR… Let's Groove lyrics… the characters… 109… etc… Christina Aguilera and Nelly Furtado own the lyrics to Sakuno's ringtones.  
If you think **Buta-chan** is familiar, he is. If you watched the (Christmas Eve) TeniMyu Hyotei Winter Match, Buta-chan is based from that pink pig that Tezuka rides at the end. XD I blame the Jeremiah was a bullfrog bit on **VH1: I love the 70s**. (I've been watching a lot of TV)  
OMG WTFBBQ! Hikaru no Go and Prince of Tennis on CN/dies/

**Thank you for all your reviews.** I really like it when you tell me which parts you liked/disliked. Reviews that make sense make me less lazy. Kainis kasi kung marami ang nagbabasa pero wala naman nag-review. Keh. (lol, maldita ako, oo XD) Reviews na ganito ang pinakamaganda. **Please feed the plot puppies.** The summer heat is killing them.


	14. Welcome to Atobe's onsen

♥ 08/06/06 ♥

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(-'.'-)  
(")-(")**  
Thank you to **noomma** for taking good care of the plot puppies. ♥  
And thank you to **Ate Yumi** for putting up with my Giant Squid epiphanies. XD

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None of them could look at Sakuno in the eye. Nobody dared to mention the wardrobe malfunction to her. She wasn't even aware her wardrobe 'malfunctioned'; she was too embarrassed about her show of clumsiness that she didn't realize what just happened. She couldn't look them in the eye either. Not for the same reasons that they had, but because she was mortified by her 'dynamic entry'.

She wanted to cry, but she dared not to. Her lower lip trembled and her eyes misted but she didn't dare cry. After Tezuka picked her up, Oishi and Kikumaru dusted her off carefully. Kikumaru hovered over the fallen Sakuno like a worried papa and Oishi clucked his tongue like a chastising mama. Everyone else was rooted to their spots, still reeling at the incident.

"You should watch where you're going, nyah?" Kikumaru reminded her gently as he removed pebbles from her hair. "You scared daddy!" Sakuno smiled weakly at him. Her face felt like it was going to burst into flames. "Let me carry your bag for you, nyah? Can you walk? Nyah Tezuka, let me carry her, I'm her papa, not you!"

Tezuka blinked at Eiji's small outburst. He looked like an older brother who ignored his younger brother's demand for his turn on a toy they shared.

"Does anything hurt when you move? Did you bump your head? Atobe, can I borrow a first aid kid?" Oishi assessed her injuries. She was littered with minor scrapes and cuts on her hands, arms, legs and knees. She looked like someone tied her at the back of the bus and dragged her across the driveway. They weren't any major cuts (or at least none that he could see), but they still needed to be cleaned and sterilized.

"Mitsu-nii, I can walk by myself," Sakuno whispered.

"Your chin is bleeding," he frowned at her.

_Oh great_, Sakuno thought. First she tripped and of all the places to get injured, it just had to be on her chin. What idiot gets her _chin_ injured?

Atobe blinked the tint on his cheeks away. Tezuka was always caring and sweet with his girlfriend. It unnerved him. He snapped his fingers and one of his servants scuttled away to procure the first aid kit. "Shall we go inside?" His face remained impassive even when he looked at Tezuka who was balancing his girlfriend and a large pink pig.

Sakuno handed Buta-chan over to Kikumaru. It served to distract him from worrying about her, and it kept her from bleeding on Buta-chan.

Tezuka's curt nod snapped everyone to attention and they went inside. Most of them avoided eye contact with Sakuno as much as possible and she interpreted it as their disappointment in her show of extreme klutziness. Tomoka wanted to tell her how her underwear was cute, but Kamio subtly whispered to her that what Sakuno didn't know wouldn't hurt her. Her pride was already injured on top of the minor cuts she got, so what was the point of embarrassing her further? Nobody wanted to mention it to her either, so they tried to keep the mental image of Sakuno's upturned skirt out of their minds. Most of them failed, but they just kept it to themselves anyway.

Momo couldn't help but notice how his buchou acted around Ryuzaki-chan. On one hand, he was loyal to Echizen whom he was closest to on the team. On the other hand, he only saw a side of his buchou that he never knew of whenever Ryuzaki-chan was around. Moments like this made him feel torn. He felt like he should choose a side but he couldn't.

Tomoka was also eyeing her senpai in a different perspective. He was so sweet to her friend that it was so endearing. Ah! But Ryoma-sama is still the one that Sakuno likes, right? She snuck a glance at Kamio-kun. Still... It was possible to admire someone for their talent and like someone else at the same time. Right?

"Youkoso!" An army of uniformed servants greeted warmly as the door to Atobe's 'small hot spring cottage' was opened. Kamio, Tomoka and Momo's jaws dropped at the elegance of the foyer. The marbled floor was polished and there were two winding banisters on either side of the room, leading to the second floor.

Everything looked so shiny and expensive. The entrance alone looked like it belonged in some kind of catalogue for construction companies to make ballrooms out of. Fancy paintings adorned the walls and there was even a lavish chandelier hanging overhead. The marble floor was polished to perfection; you could see your reflection when you looked down.

"I thought he said 'small private onsen retreat'?" Kamio whispered lowly to Tomoka beside him. "This doesn't look like anything 'small' to me."

Tomoka nodded when she whispered back. "I feel like we're in a fancy museum."

Momo overheard their conversation, since he was standing on the other side of Tomoka. "I'm almost afraid to touch anything. I'm worried I might break something," he added, also in a low voice.

"The entryway alone is as big as my house," Eiji stared at the tall ceiling in awe. There was some sort of painting on the dome that housed the chandelier overhead. His superior eyesight could make out cute little cherubs and fluffy clouds.

Yuushi rolled his eyes. They haven't even seen anything yet.

A servant came back with a first aid kit. Oishi thanked him before he took it. Tezuka refused to put Sakuno down so he treated her wounds while his buchou held her. The balancing act was one befitting of Eiji himself. Hyōtei gave Tezuka curious looks all the while, which he ignored. They all wondered why he was still carrying the girl even after Oishi placed a band-aid on her chin to cover her one and only major injury. Then they glanced at their own buchou to judge his reaction to it. He seemed unaware of their interest and a bit bothered by Tezuka's actions.

Momo also stared, he couldn't help it. "They look like a newly married couple and buchou is carrying his bride over the threshold." He remarked to Kamio. It earned him a hard glare from Ryoma but he didn't notice. Tezuka chose to ignore Momo and his remark as well.

Atobe cleared his throat. He didn't like Momoshiro's comment. "On the first floor we have the kitchens, two bathrooms, a solarium that doubles as a tea room, an office, the den, the dining room, a game room, the theatre and the living room." Without any adieu, he started his tour.

The mansion looked more modest on the outside than it did on the inside; the outside was impressive in itself, but it looked good enough to rival a four-star hotel on the inside.

"I think I saw a house like this once," Momo's eyes were wide as he ogled the _marble_ toilet seat with the golden flush button.

"Oh yeah?" Kamio admired the small chandelier overhead. _Who puts a chandelier in their bathroom!_

"Yeah," Momo nodded and followed behind Kaidoh who snorted. "What, you don't believe me? Have you seen that American show on television? On MTV..."

"Cribs?" Ryoma turned back to interject.

"Exactly!" Momo earned a pointed glare from Atobe. He was still giving them a tour and he hated to be interrupted. Momo swallowed audibly and kept his mouth shut. When Atobe finished his little explanation about the current room they were in, the crowd followed him out. Momo remained in the back with Kamio. "Dude, the dining room walls are lined with silk!" He whispered in a loud, unbelieving voice.

"I noticed." The decadence of the whole 'simple resort' was starting to make him feel queasy. He wasn't used to this level of richness. Kamio wondered once again why he was here when a small hand grabbed his shirt.

Tomoka wasn't even aware what she had done. She was just as busy ogling the sinfully chic house they were going to be staying in for the next week. She was starting to feel like a princess.

Atobe next showed them the back door leading to the pool and revealed how to get to the outdoor hot springs. It was considered outdoors because the ceiling was open, but it still looked very private. There were two entrances, one for men and one for women. They normally had mixed baths, but it was only according to the preference of the guests occupying the resort.

There was a pool house beside the pool and a tennis court to the side. Kikumaru grumbled about how he didn't remember to bring his tennis gear because "What onsen retreat would have a tennis court?" but then Momo replied with "His pool house is as big as my normal house."

The Hyōtei buchō chose to ignore their comments again. "The property extends to the forest two miles back and you are free to go hiking if you wish, but you should inform one of the staff first or bring someone who is familiar with the area."

They toured the house some more and Atobe showed them how things functioned. Inui took notes of his lecture all the time while the others, except for Tezuka and Fuji, gaped like fish. Oishi especially so when Atobe showed them a fish tank that contained lots of rare, tropical fish. Some of them couldn't forget the look of love that crossed Oishi's face as they expected him to hug the glass tank. Momo even got tempted to bet if Oishi was going to lick it.

"And this room," a servant opened the door to the room Atobe pointed at, "is one of the game rooms. Ore-sama thinks that Tezuka might find this interesting, ne Kabaji?"

Kabaji was suspiciously five feet away from Atobe. "Ossu."

Kikumaru saw Gakuto titter before he got a hold of himself and looked away. Curious, Seigaku and Kamio peeked at the room in unison. The room looked like a bona fide arcade. Their eyes widened as one as they took in the assorted games inside the spacious room, but all eyes were especially drawn to the DDR machines in the center.

Sakuno face-faulted and stifled the urge to squeak as Mitsu-nii's grip on her tightened. Tezuka did not enjoy what Atobe implied. Everyone from Seigaku (except Fuji) and Kamio took a cautionary step away from Tezuka.

"We— we should go take our bags to our room and um, unpack." Oishi hastily changed topics.

"The servants will take your bags to your rooms," Atobe informed them.

"How will we know which room is ours?" Momo was reluctant to hand his bag over. He wasn't used to servants waiting on him. "I thought we were going to one of those normal resorts and we all room in one big room while sleeping on futons."

Kikumaru nodded in agreement. "Like when we did our survival training."

Gakuto winced. "You mean that place where you have killer frogs?" Choutarou shuddered in remembrance. "That place was a dump!"

"Hey!" Kikumaru protested. "It wasn't _that_ bad... the food was good and it was fun... but yeah, that place doesn't compare to this one." Gakuto smirked at his admittance.

"This way, tatsujin-sama," the servants bowed.

Oishi shook his head. "Uh... just Oishi would do or uh..." He was met with blank looks. No one had ever waited on him or called him 'master' before. It was a new and kind of eerie experience. He didn't like it.

"Normally," Atobe said one last time as he sent the servants away (Seigaku and Kamio really didn't want to hand over their luggage), "we have more than enough rooms even when the whole team is visiting, but since we have two, there is a need to share space." His tone was laced with a hint of apology.

"We're used to sharing rooms nyah, don't worry about it." Kikumaru assured him. "But I get dibs on Ochibi and chibi-musume!"

"Eiji, the girls should have a room of their own," Oishi gently reminded his friend.

"But why?" He didn't see anything wrong with sharing a room with his chibis. This was a chance to get to know his chibis' sleeping habits and maybe even push them more together. He wasn't going to pass it up! "I'll be on high alert and protect chibi-musume's virtue so that Ochibi doesn't do that thing under the thing again," he loudly whispered to Oishi.

"That thing under the thing?" Choutarou's brows furrowed.

Gakuto was also confused. "Who are Ochibi and chibi-musume?"

"They're my chibis," Kikumaru replied. "Coz see when chibi-musume was sick, Ochibi took advantage of her and—"

"I didn't take advantage of chibi-musume!" Ryoma fists were balled up, his stance was very defensive. It didn't help that Momo-senpai and Eiji-senpai were laughing at him. Even Inui-senpai looked amused at his use of Eiji-senpai's term. "I meant to say Ryuzaki. Ryuzaki, not chibi-musume," he amended.

"You were taking advantage of her?" Oshitari questioned. He didn't miss how his team captain stiffened.

"She was sick and Echizen attempted to take her to the clinic," Inui took pity on his kouhai. He also noted how Hyōtei looked at their captain as one, swiveled their gaze to Ryuzaki-chan in perfect synchrony, and then turned to look at Atobe again, like spectators in a tennis match.

They were a little disappointed when all their buchou said was "Hm."

"Young Master, the rooms are ready," the stone-faced, uniformed butler informed them.

"Please show our guests to their rooms," Atobe instructed.

Sakuno was about to ask Mitsu-nii to put her down when a large ball of fur bounded down the stairs and went for Tezuka...

"Woah! What is that?" Kikumaru jumped out of the way just in time.

... Or to be more precise, it went for Tezuka's cargo. He held up his hands to keep her from it. Sakuno squeaked ungracefully from above.

"Nyah, a puppy!"

"Beat!" Atobe scolded his dog. Beat ignored him and wagged his tail as he continued to reach for the girl in Tezuka's arms. In his doggy mind, all he saw were two long tails and he wanted to play with them. "Beat, stop it! Sit boy!" Atobe's commands were neatly ignored by the amused dog. He continued chasing after the two braids up above him.

He woke up to an empty room and he looked for his master a few minutes ago. He found his master, but he was more curious about the two tails that looked like a lot of fun right now.

Tezuka was trying hard not to kick it away as he brought Sakuno up higher to keep her way from the dog. It looked like it wanted to eat her. Its paws were balanced on his torso as it tried to climb over him to get to her.

"— Ack! Bad puppy! Bad! Don't try to eat my chibi-musume! Stop it nyah!"

"Beat is not a man-eater, he's just excited." Atobe defended his dog. Beat looked really delighted... was he reaching for the girl's hair...?

"He's not trying to eat Ryuzaki, Eiji-senpai. I think it's trying to reach for her braids." _I told her she needed to cut her hair._ Ryoma stepped closer to the playful dog but stopped short when the dog suddenly turned to him and growled menacingly. His eyes widened a fraction. Animals loved him. Karupin loved him. He slept with Karupin all the time.

Wait...

The dog could probably smell his cat on him...

... Oh shi—

"Nyaaaaaaaaah! Bad dog! Don't eat my Ochibi nyaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"

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"So what do you think?"

"Ten bucks says that Atobe gets rejected. The girl didn't seem that interested in him. Wait, scratch that, she didn't look even _remotely_ interested in him."

"That's not what I was asking, Shishido-san!" Choutarou was scandalized.

Shishido blinked at him. "It wasn't?"

"Twenty says he doesn't give up anyway," Gakuto stretched languidly on the chaise chair. Only Atobe and Kabaji were missing from the room. Jiroh was sleeping on one of the beds and the 'meeting' was established as soon as Seigaku and the lone Fudomine boy got acquainted with their rooms.

"Gakuto-senpai! We shouldn't be betting on Buchou like this," Choutarou frowned at his senpai disapprovingly. "Isn't that right, Hiyoshi?"

Hiyoshi Wakashi shrugged. "Twenty-five."

Frustrated, Choutarou smacked his palm against his forehead. What was this world coming to? His teammates had gone insane, betting on the poor Buchou like this... "Instead of betting on him, we should be helping him. Isn't that our job as his teammates? We should stick together and consider this like we would our tennis matches. The victory of our captain can be achieved if the team aids him."

"I wonder why Tezuka was carrying her for so long." Shishido wondered out loud, effectively ignoring his doubles partner's speech.

"Do you think she's Tezuka's girl?" Gakuto asked. "If so, does that mean that they're rivals not only in tennis now? Hmmmm... Do those braids look familiar to you?"

Hiyoshi hmmmed, "You know, I was thinking of the same thing, but I can't remember where I've seen them before."

A contemplative silence reigned in the room.

"We don't know anything for sure, and I don't think Atobe would like it if he found out that we're having this conversation at his expense." Choutarou felt like the only sane person in the area. He looked at his senpai's sleeping form on the bed and wondered if he should wake him up or not. What they were talking about was madness. "We're all jumping to conclusions. We should just ask Buchou..."

"We already went through that." Gakuto interrupted dryly. "If you want details, go ask him yourself. You can pass it on to us afterwards." None of them wanted to look like gossip mongrels, even if in truth, they really were.

Choutarou turned to his last resort. "Oshitari-senpai, do something!"

Yuushi joined his hands together under his chin and leaned forward, glasses gleaming. "Boys, you should know better."

Choutarou felt a little relieved. At least more than one of them was thinking clearly. Their Hyōtei spirit of solidarity wasn't lost, after all. His tight grip on his hair loosened.

Yuushi grinned almost maniacally, "You forgot to establish time limits on your bets."

The Scud Serve specialist almost fell off his chair in disbelief. "Not you too, Oshitari-senpai!"

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No chibis were eaten by Atobe's dog that day. Beat was carried off by Kabaji at the orders of Atobe... preferably somewhere far, far away from Kikumaru's chibis.

In the end, Kikumaru didn't have his way. Sakuno and Tomoka shared a room; he wasn't allowed to gather his chibis with him in one room together. Tezuka was with Fuji and Inui. Their room was next to the girls' room and it shared a connecting bathroom in the middle. Ryoma, Momo, Horio and Kamio took one room together. Kawamura, Kaidoh, Oishi and Kikumaru bunked in another. Their rooms were directly across the hallway from their other friends' rooms and they too shared a bathroom with each other in the middle.

They chose these four rooms specifically. There were other rooms, but these four were the only vacant ones next to and close to each other. They were also the only ones with five beds each.

They separated to unpack and agreed to meet up downstairs afterwards.

Just as Sakuno finished her short 'talk' with Tomo-chan regarding Kamio-kun, her phone rang.

_All the girls stepping out for a public affair... All night,let's rock,cause the party don't stop... _

_All the cameras, come out, for a public affair... Who cares,let's rock,cause the party don't stop..._

"Ann-chan?"

"Sakunoooooooo!" Ann's voice clamored from the other end. "Where are you now? Are you having fun? Is Banshee with you? How's Kamio-kun? Is he fitting in? Is he getting along with the others? Niichan wants to know." Sakuno heard Kippei protest in the background. "How are you? Are you staying away from Atobe like I told you to? There's no telling if he's going to 'accidentally' do anything to you again. You should stick close to Banshee like I told you to. She's not as capable as I am, but she'll have to do since I can't be there. Did you pack enough clothes? Did you make sure that—"

"Ann-Ann-chan…" Sakuno interrupted her friend's tirade before it could get any longer. "We're at the resort now, yes. We're just unpacking our bags so we haven't really had a chance to do anything yet."

"Where's Kamio-kun?"

"He's staying with Momo-senpai."

"You're kidding me."

"Nope."

"Seriously?"

Sakuno nodded and continued to unpack her stuff. They were sharing a bathroom with the boys in the other room so she placed their girly stuff on one side of the left sink. The other sink and its side should be for the boys. "Seriously. You should've seen them together. I've never seen them get along so well before."

"They weren't just acting like they like each other coz Tezuka-san was with them, were they? They behave when they're around him."

"No," Sakuno assured her friend "not at all. They're getting along really well."

"Hmmm... what was Momoshiro-kun's body language like?"

"Ummm... tall?"

"No, no, I meant was he fidgety or stiff... what he was doing with his hands and stuff... do you need to check if they're still alive right now..."

Sakuno giggled a little. "I don't think they're going to kill each other. Momo-senpai wasn't fidgety or stiff at all. I think Hyōtei wondered why Kamio-kun is here but Tomo-chan is keeping him company. Momo-senpai is helping her. They're getting along well. If they're not, Tomo-chan will be there if I'm not."

"That's good to know," Ann's concerns for her friend were assuaged. They talked for a few minutes more while Sakuno finished unpacking.

Fuji came through the adjoining bathroom door a few minutes later. "Are you girls ready to go downstairs?"

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There was nothing like sitting naked in steaming hot mineral water with your fellow male friends to promote male camaraderie.

"What are you looking at?" Water splashed when Ryoma crossed his arms together. His glare was fierce. He considered it extremely rude for someone to stare at another person like that, even if they were both males. _Especially_ since they were both males! If he wanted to stare at something, he could stare at his own... thing. They were only covered by a small piece of cloth, for crying out loud. There had to be an unwritten rule somewhere that no one is allowed to ogle fellow bathers like that.

Atobe raised an offended brow at the brat's tone of voice. "Why nothing, nothing at all," he said pointedly. Was the brat suggesting that he, the great Atobe, had been _staring_? The nerve!

Fuji watched the exchange behind his closed chinky eyes, amused. Tezuka soaked indifferently beside him. He didn't give a hoot what they were talking about; he could feel the tension ease away from his muscles as he sank lower into the water and that was all he was concerned about. The other boys also littered the spacious onsen. There was so much room that it was enough to fit all of them comfortably and there was still room for more.

Momo sat beside Kamio as they enjoyed soaking in silence. Inui sat beside Kaidoh and Kawamura, his green notebook notably absent. Kabaji had a white towel on top of his head as he soaked beside Atobe. All the Seigaku people and Kamio had been excited to soak in the hot springs. Some of the Hyōtei boys grumbled a little at how the other onsen was reserved for the girls now, but they guessed they couldn't help it; they figured sacrifices had to be made in favor of Atobe's girl. Still, it took some getting used to...

"Stop staring at me," Ryoma grit out between clenched teeth. The older boy's attention was really making him feel uncomfortable.

"Ore-sama was not staring at you," Atobe replied just as annoyed as him. "Ore-sama wasn't looking at anything in particular. Ore-sama was just lost in thought." He was thinking about how he could make their stay more enjoyable and if he should organize events to keep them entertained before the brat interrupted his thoughts. Tezuka looked like he didn't want to step one foot inside the arcade. Pity, that.

"I didn't know you were capable of thinking," Ryoma sunk further into the water and drew his knees up to his chest. It didn't hurt to be careful. Lost in thought? Shyeah right.

The door to the onsen suddenly opened. "I'm here!" An energetic Kikumaru clad only in a white towel happily announced. "Nyah Chibi-musume, are you there?" He called out towards the removable divider that separated the newly dubbed 'girls-only onsen'. The shoji screen had cherry blossom patterns on it and it looked more like a romantic background than a makeshift divider.

"Hai, Eiji-senpai!" Sakuno answered from the other end.

"Papa! Call me Eiji-papa!"

Oishi appeared behind him and walked towards an empty spot in the onsen. His bones sang in anticipation of the heavenly properties of the onsen. Kikumaru wasn't as disciplined. Inui saw the look on Eiji's eyes and he tried to shout out a warning.

"Eiji don't—"

The acrobatics specialist of Seigaku gathered speed and surpassed Oishi as he cannonballed into the hot water. "Wheeeeeeeeee!"

_SPLASH!_

Water splattered everywhere and created a small tidal wave that washed over everybody. Not even Oishi, who wasn't inside the onsen, was spared. Water overlapped from the edges of the onsen and onto the floor from Kikumaru's jump. It also wet the walls, the divider and everything within the splash radius. Those of them who haven't gotten their hairs wet yet looked like drowned rats. Atobe's former perfect hair was matted against his perfect skull as he glared at the offender. Oshitari, Tezuka and Inui's eyeglasses were fogged up and drenched by the tidal wave that Kikumaru caused. Loud protests echoed throughout the onsen.

"Kikumaru!" Gakuto's normally flat hair was in disarray. Tufts of it stuck out in odd angles where the waves carried it and some blanketed his face. He wiped the hair away from his eyes and glared at his rival from Seigaku. "What'd you do that for!"

"This isn't a swimming pool," Shishido said through gritted teeth.

Yuushi's brow twitched in irritation, but he held his temper.

Tezuka sat in silence, but everyone could feel the irritation radiating from him in waves. It was worse than that time Kikumaru accidentally placed mentos in his coke. It hadn't been pretty then and it certainly didn't look pretty now. Kikumaru's only saving grace back then was that he thought it was Oishi's soda he was punking.

"That was fun nyah? I should do it one more time!"

Several pairs of hands dragged him back down.

A barely contained "Sit!" echoed in the onsen

Mirrored with an irritated "Stop it!"

And an almost-pleading "That's enough, Eiji-senpai."

Was followed by a wet "Fssssh..."

So he shrugged and relaxed his body into the hot spring. "Aaaaah... this is the life."

"Where's Jiroh?" Atobe ran his hands through his hair to tame it. It was better than wrapping it around Kikumaru's neck, like what his hand itched to do.

"I think he's still sleeping," Gakuto patted his hair flat. Damn Kikumaru. The guy was now loudly humming a tune.

"Do you guys want to sing an onsen song nyah?"

"No." Most of them answered as one.

Kikumaru pouted but he wasn't daunted. "Hoi chibi-musume, do you wanna sing a song? These guys are being mean to me and they don't wanna sing a song nyah." He loudly asked towards the divider.

There was a slight pause before the chibi replied. "Su-sure, Eiji-senpai. What song would you like to sing?"

Thankfully, after several minutes of Eiji and his chibi's rendition of 'this is the song that never ends', salvation came.

"Young Master," a uniformed butler called out from the doorway, "dinner is ready when you are."

Never have you seen or will ever see a bunch of half-naked bishounen covered only with white towels flee for their sanity so fast.

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During dinner, Tomoka sat next to Kamio. She made sure he had all he needed and made sure he didn't feel left out. Earlier today, Sakuno had given her this task and she wasn't able to refuse. She had been so nice when she asked and Tomoka didn't like seeing unshed tears in her friend's eyes. "You should try the beef, Kamio-kun." It was easy being nice to him, since he was nice to her in return.

Sakuno couldn't keep the grin off her face because of it, and Tezuka helped her get control of her giggles by stepping on her foot under the table. It wasn't too painful, but the ache was uncomfortable enough to get rid of her giggling fit. He did get carried away with it, however, so she retaliated by kicking him back.

It hurt her foot probably more than it hurt his shin and all she got back was an indifferent stare behind his glasses. It amused him when she returned his pretend indifference with narrowed eyes and puffed-up cheeks. She looked like a cute squirrel having a silent tantrum.

Fuji was curious about his friends' behavior, but kept his mouth shut. His smile never faltered and relished the taste of his savory steak that cut like it was a stick of butter. _MMmmm… yum!_

After dinner, Ryoma didn't miss the look that passed between Ryuzaki and Buchou before they excused themselves from the table. He expected her friend to go with her, but Osakada was too busy talking to Kamio to even notice her friend's departure. He felt ignored all throughout dinner and he was not in a good mood right now.

Tezuka and Sakuno caught up with Hyōtei's buchou just a few seconds after he left the dining room.

"Um, Atobe-san?"

Tezuka was standing next to Sakuno when Atobe turned around. _They're always together_, he thought with a hint of something unidentifiable. "Yes?"

Sakuno presented him with a gift-wrapped package. "This isn't much, but we would like to thank you for inviting us here. We really appreciate it."

"Thank you," he accepted with a slight bow. "Can ore-sama open it?"

"Hai!" Sakuno nodded repeatedly, her braids swinging in the process. She wanted to see his expression when he opened it. She bit her bottom lip in anticipation. It wasn't anything elegant, but it was from the bottom of their hearts.

The wrapper was simple and the bow was a tad bit feminine. It crinkled under his touch and he tore it open to reveal...

Tezuka blinked to judge his reaction. He better not say anything to offend Sakuno or else—

"We all contributed and helped, even a little. Mitsu-nii made the frame and Oishi-senpai helped me decorate it. Kikumaru-senpai and the others gave us a lot of material to use." The gift was a blown-up framed photograph of their best group snapshot from the Eyes Rutherford concert. "Syusuke-nii was the one who took and developed the picture." Sakuno continued. "We noticed you didn't take any pictures and we thought you'd want a souvenir... you..." Did he hate it? "I... I'm sorry that's all we could give you in return..." her voice wavered; her earlier excitement was now replaced by apprehension. His silence made her nervous.

Tezuka was about to clear his throat when Atobe finally spoke. "It's really nice. Ore-sama shall treasure it, thank you."

Sakuno gave him a beaming smile.

His heart swelled inside, if that was even possible, and he couldn't identify the feeling that accompanied it. It was the first handmade gift anybody had ever given him. No one ever bothered to give him such a simple gift before, so maybe that was it, he thought as he listened to the girl tell him more about Fuji's skills on photography. It was hard not to get lost in her enthusiasm.

He failed to notice the odd look that Tezuka gave him before the others joined them.

"Oh you gave it to him already nyah?" Kikumaru bounded towards his chibi-musume and peered at Atobe. "We made it ourselves!"

"Yes, ore-sama was told that." Atobe ignored the amused looks his teammates gave him. "Do you guys want to go to the arcade?"

Tezuka's glare was hard enough to slice through three inches of steel.

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Sakuno woke up with a start. Her dream of riding Buta-chan over fluffy clouds was interrupted by the parched feeling in her throat. She was thirsty. Her clouded mind didn't register the unfamiliar room or her bestfriend sleeping in the bed next to hers. She just wanted a glass of water.

She was never one to turn the lights on in the middle of the night, if she ever woke up to go to the bathroom or needed to go to the kitchen to get a drink. She felt her way towards the door, out of the room, through the hallways and past the elegant stairway. Her brain was slow to register the expensive marble floor beneath her bare feet, but the cold quickly seeped in by the time she half-realized she didn't know where the heck she was.

Before she could regain her bearings, something cold nudged her from behind, startling her. "Eek!" A large, hairy dog was wagging its tail at her. Sakuno massaged her poor heart. "You almost scared me to death!" She frowned at the dog. "Where did you come from?"

It whined and nudged her again. She reached out and scratched his ear. "Um... Beat, was it?"

Beat woofed softly, as if he understood that it was the middle of the night and the rest of the house was asleep so he had to remain quiet.

"You wouldn't happen to know where the kitchen is, would you." Sakuno asked more at herself than the purring dog. Do dogs even purr? This one surely liked being scratched behind his ear.

Beat woofed softly again before he padded over to one direction. When Sakuno didn't follow him, he woofed a little more forcefully as if he was telling her to come.

Sakuno shrugged, placed a hand on his back and then followed him. This was his territory so she could only guess that he was more familiar of the mansion's layout more than she was. Maybe he could help her go back to her room later, too. The dog clearly had a better sense of direction than her. She already felt lost and she was a little scared of the big dark corridors.

Soon, they reached their target. Beat nudged the swinging doors with his nose and Sakuno followed him inside. The room was dark but the light from the refrigerator's ice and water dispenser together with the moonlight streaming in from the broad windows were enough to provide fluorescence. Even if she wanted to turn the lights on, she didn't know where the light switches were anyway.

She also found another dilemma: she didn't know where they kept the glasses. She looked at Beat curiously, "I guess it would be too much to ask if you know where they keep the glasses, huh?" Everything looked so expensive. Marbled tops, stainless steel appliances, dark wood and complicated-looking faucets adorned the room. She could make out at least two dish washers and four sinks; two of the sinks faced a window and the other two were located on the center aisle.

She didn't want to open any cabinets to look for china; she was afraid she might accidentally break something. The sink suddenly didn't look so bad. Surely tap water from the really elaborate-looking faucet was drinkable.

Now if she could only reach it...

Beat sat down on the cold marble floor and watched as the human girl who smelled good leaned on her elbows to turn the sink on. He liked this girl. Her hair was longer than his and it entertained him when it swished behind her. She had two tails on her head earlier today, but they were gone now. His doggy brain briefly wondered about it but he didn't really mind since he could smell the scent from her liberated mane better this way.

Sakuno turned the faucet on just as the room was flooded with light. Beat woofed at a sleepy boy who rubbed his eyes while he yawned. He stopped and stared at the small female perched on the center aisle. The water gushed from the faucet as Sakuno stared back at him like a doe trapped in the headlights.

"Um..." Sakuno couldn't remember his name. They continued to stare at each other for a minute more until Sakuno broke eye contact, turned the faucet off and jumped down from the counter.

"You're Atobe's new guest?" He ventured a guess. He heard enough even though he spent most of his days sleeping. Some girl from Seigaku. Flowers. Inviting them over. The others were curious... something with Atobe. He safely concluded that this was the girl his teammates were curious about.

"Ah... hai," Sakuno answered, as she racked her brain for his name "... Akutagawa-san. I'm Ryuzaki Sakuno." Her unbound hair floated over her shoulders like a chocolate waterfall when she bowed.

He paused in mid-yawn. "I know who you are."

She blinked at him, grabbed a handful of hair and twisted it nervously around her fingers. She felt underdressed. Her matching cotton pooh camisole and short shorts looked so unsophisticated compared to his slippers and silken bathrobe.

"Would you like some ice cream?" He asked as he searched the cabinets for a couple of bowls and then took spoons out of one of the drawers. One drawback to sleeping most of the time is waking up in the middle of the night and not being able to fall back to sleep as fast as he was able to do during the day.

"Wouldn't Atobe-san mind if we ate his ice cream?" Sakuno followed him with her eyes as he opened the freezer door and took out ice cream tubs.

"Nah," he replied. "He won't mind, I do this all the time. Strawberry or rocky road?" She pointed to the strawberry and he placed the rocky road back. "I don't think he's an ice cream person," he continued as he placed scoopfuls of the cold dessert in the bowls. "He's more of a cake person, if you ask me."

Sakuno silently agreed as she thanked him when he passed her a bowl and they enjoyed their ice cream together in silence for several minutes. She started to feel cold halfway through. Her hair and clothes offered little insulation.

"So do you play tennis?"

Sakuno shivered a little from the cold seeping into her bones but still continued to eat her ice cream. "I try, but I'm not very good at it."

That piqued his interest. So Atobe didn't care if the girl wasn't good in his beloved sport? She told him how she still couldn't hit the ball with the middle of her racket and had to restring her racket three times already. Ice cream was their common ground and she felt totally at ease with his company and him in hers, surprisingly.

She saw how excited he was when he played against Syusuke-nii. When she asked him about it he went into his fanboy mode and gushed about how awesome it was to experience the Hakugei in their match. She nodded her head and listened to his energetic recount; she didn't have the heart to tell him that she was there and witnessed the whole thing.

He was surprised to know that she took tennis lessons from a Fudomine student instead of someone from Seigaku. He suggested that she should ask her grandmother to tell them to teach her. She told him that she was contented with Shinji-kun teaching her because she could spend more time with her Fudomine friends that way. Syusuke-nii was already tutoring her and she mentioned in passing how she often bothered Mitsu-nii.

He finished his ice cream before her. "You could ask Atobe if you want." He noticed how she shivered once in a while but continued to eat her treat. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind." In fact, he was sure his buchou would be more than happy to do it, if he were to trust the speculations from his teammates.

She looked aghast over his suggestion. "I'm sure Atobe-san has more important things to do," she smiled at him.

"I doubt it," he honestly replied. It looked like his buchou was going to experience a lot of hurdles. Maybe he even needed help. "Are you cold?"

Sakuno shook her head in denial even as she shivered lightly. The ice cream was great but now she felt cold. Beat woofed quietly, as if he wanted to remind them that he was still there. She reached down to pet him and carried her bowl to the sink. The dog nudged the back of her knees to get her attention, which caused her to stumble lightly.

"He likes you."

Sakuno chuckled lightly. "I think he just wants to see me trip." The second the words were out of her mouth, she remembered her earlier accident. She couldn't remember seeing him there, though. She snuck a glance at him just to make sure. When he didn't look like he was going to laugh at her, she relaxed.

"You could just leave those there. The maids will take care of it in the morning." He stopped her when she started to wash the bowls and spoons.

"I don't want to be a bother," was all she said. There were only four things to wash; two bowls and two spoons. He helped her dry and place them back where he got them earlier. Then he surprised her when he took off his robe and offered it to her.

"Take it, you look cold," he offered to explain. He was built sturdier than she was and he was wearing pajamas that kept him warm.

"Thank you."

He got her a glass of cold water before they trotted out of the kitchen with Beat. "You wanna go watch some TV?"

Sakuno yawned behind a small hand. "Um..."

"That's alright," he smiled warmly at her. "Do you know how to get back to your room?" She tentatively shook her head.

He took her back to the second floor and it was easy to figure out which room was hers from then on. It was the only one with the open door. Beat let himself in without any prompting. Jiroh batted an eye at the dog's actions but didn't comment on it. He had the right idea, after all.

"Thank you, Akutagawa-san." She forgot that she was still wearing his robe.

Beat was a wise dog. If she was to be Atobe's girlfriend, they might as well get used to each other right now. "Just Jiroh would do," he told her. "See you tomorrow. Oyasumi," he went back downstairs after the girl closed the door. He was wide awake now; maybe watching some television will help him fall back to sleep.

Back in the room that Sakuno shared with Tomoka, Beat made himself comfortable in her bed with Buta-chan. It was roomy enough for the three of them, but the dog stuck to her like glue. He insisted on getting under the covers with her, so she made room for him. Then he waited until she got settled nice and cozy until he plopped half his body over hers, effectively trapping her.

Thankfully, she didn't suffocate or feel uncomfortable, so she sighed and gave up. If the dog wanted to use her as a pillow, then she had no choice but to let him. She didn't mind. She wished she had a pet of her own as she hugged the fluffy dog closer and drifted back to sleep.

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"Oh my— what is that? Sakuno? SAKUNO ARE YOU THERE?" Tomoka's voice ripped through the silence in the house. She just woke up and was shocked to find the _monster_ that attempted to eat her bestfriend yesterday in Sakuno's bed. Did it eat Sakuno? "Sakuno, _speak to me_!" There was a huge lump in the luxurious bed, but she wasn't sure if it was Sakuno, the monster dog or if it was just Buta-chan.

The lump moved and mumbled something intangible under the covers before a brown head popped up. "Tomo-chan?" Sakuno rubbed her eyes sleepily. "Where's the fire?"

A hasty knock was heard on their bathroom door before it opened and Fuji came in uninvited, eyes opened. He didn't have a shirt on, he was only wearing a pair of pants and his hair was wet. Droplets of water fell from his head to the towel on his shoulders. He looked alarmed. His eyes flashed as he scanned their room for any intruders, his stance defensive. "Are you girls alright? I heard Osakada-chan shout and thought there was trouble..."

Sakuno yawned and continued to rub her eyes as she gave a dainty shrug. She just woke up; she didn't know what the problem was... and if there was a problem, she wouldn't have caused it somehow, because she was sleeping until a second ago. "It wasn't me, I'm innocent!" Beat woofed beside her, as if he agreed and he too was proclaiming his innocence.

Tomoka blushed. "I... I woke up and saw... I thought the monster dog," she pointed to the fluff ball on Sakuno's bed, "ate Sakuno or something... it... surprised me. Gomen nasai, Fuji-senpai! I'm sorry if I disturbed you."

Fuji smiled at his kouhai who repeatedly bowed in apology. "That's alright, Osakada-chan. Don't worry about it." He relaxed and wiped his hair vigorously, shaking the excess water off. He had just finished taking a shower and hastily put his pants on when he heard the girl's shout. "I don't think English Sheepdogs eat people. He looks pretty friendly to me. Look how he's wagging his tail? I think he likes Sakuno-chan."

Sakuno rubbed his furry head affectionately. "You're just a big lovable doggy, aren't you Beat? Yes you are... yes you are." She rubbed a spot behind his ear. The dog enjoyed the girl's cooing and he answered it with excited yips and barks of his own.

That encouraged Tomoka to pet the dog as well. Soon, Beat was enjoying a very relaxing rub down from two cute females. He contentedly laid down on the bed like he owned it.

_I'm bringing sexy back__ Them other boys don't know how to act_..._ I think you're special what's behind your back  
So turn around and I'll pick up the slack__ Take 'em to the bridge_..._ Dirty babe… You see these shackles__ Baby I'm your slave_

Both girls blinked at each other curiously and then they looked at Fuji. Fuji blinked back at them, his hand stilled from wiping his hair dry.

_I'll let you whip me if I misbehave… It's just that no one makes me feel this way… Take 'em to the chorus!_

"Sakuno, I think your phone is ringing."

_Come here girl… Go ahead, be gone with it… Come to the back… Go ahead, be gone with it…_

Taking it from the nightstand, Sakuno held her phone up curiously before she realized that her friend was right. But she didn't have a ringtone like— "Moshi-moshi?" — oh... right... Syusuke-nii messed with it yesterday. "Yuuta-nii? Hai, hai ... What?" Her brows creased in confusion. "Meet you _where_?"

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**( )-( )  
(-'.'-)  
(")-(")  
Jessica Simpson**, A Public Affair. **Justin Timberlake**, Sexy Back (damn you, TRL!)  
I asked Zan-san what **Beat** was and she told me he looks like an English Sheepdog so I'm going with that. XP  
**shadow-wind auror **and I would like to see fanarts. XD  
Thanks for all your reviews. ♥

**Current favorite anime:** Still Blood+ (43 and counting) I'm losing my sanity over this anime. Episode 43 had me squeeing, laughing, worrying, crying, feeling bad and crying while laughing all in the span of five minutes. ¬¬  
**Anime recommendation:** Eureka 7 (mecha!)  
**Current favorite song:** Raion by Jinn from Blood+  
**Current obsession:** Solomon (Yes, I love him more than Kyouya can you believe it? O.O His seiyuu is the same as Miroku's.)  
**Random no jutsu:** If I asked you the top three bishies that you would like to pair up with Sakuno, who would they be? You can tell me why and stuff I'm just curious, that's why I'm asking. /embarrassed sweatdrop/ If three aren't enough, you can make it five if you want. Heh.

**Get your sexy on!  
... l  
... l  
... v**


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